Bleach AtWW: The Doomsday Tomes
by RertyanTheDark
Summary: 3rd in After the Winter War series. Just over a year has passed since the initial incident which brought Kai to Karakura, and it seems his past just will not leave him alone. What will unfold when an old force returns to strike again? Full summary inside.
1. The Unexpected Reunion

_**Disclaimer: **I do not own Bleach, Tite Kubo does. However, note that anything not of the Manga/Anime (unless I point out otherwise) is of my own design, including my OCs Kai, Rertyan and the Sanctuary Team._

_**Warnings: **Contains slight romantic reference, swearing and violence throughout._

_**Brief: **Just over a year has passed since the initial incident which brought Kai to Karakura, and it seems his past just will not leave him alone. An old adversary's return forces the group into a new world, but something has changed. Can they work together to stop the ultimate evil from destroying their homes, or will darkness fall over the dimensions?_

_**Pairings: **KaiHime, Ichiruki_

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><p><em><strong>AN:** I have two things to say, really;_

_First, thank you to everyone who has read and reviewed my works, you are the reason I carried on some times and I love your enthusiasm. Also, thank you for last month (January 2012) as that saw my highest story traffic ever, which is fairly impressive._

_Secondly, if you have not read my previous works, this story follows on after a time-lapse from the following of my works, which I recommend reading first;_

_**The Black Hollow**_

_**Bleach After the Winter War**_

_**Bleached Souls: Black Bloodlust**_

_Anyway, without further adieu, I give you the fourth story in this series. Enjoy!_

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><p><strong>Bleach; the Doomsday Tomes<strong>

**Chapter 1: An Unexpected Reunion**

Deep in the bowels of the dark fortress which sat on the blackened earth and under the blood-red sky, a small group of beings gathered. There was eight of them in all, each sat around a long table, the head of which was empty. The creatures looked amongst one another, wondering what was taking their host so long to arrive and what the purpose of calling them there had been.

Suddenly, the heavy stone doors ground open again, revealing another pair of silhouettes in the back-drop of the light. As they closed again, the silhouettes became recognisable as another of their kind and a human who wore a dark suit of armour over his body and a torn cape the colour of dried blood flowing over his back. The two of them walked towards the table and the human sat at the head of it, eyeing the group gathered before him carefully.

"I see you all made it," he said in a regal yet dark tone. "I am sorry to have kept you waiting, but I have been making some perfections to my latest weapon, something which I am sure cannot have escaped your attention."

"We've lost thirty of my best soldiers alone collecting that damned thing," a dark-scaled creature growled. "I will not tolerate anything less than perfection from it, JX!"

The man's reiatsu sky-rocketed, in venomous response to the demand, crushing the nine others present downwards.

"Know your place, Damcras," JX said calmly, though the killing intent in his words was clear. "Do not try my patience about your men; if they died getting that one piece, it is their fault for being weak, and to call them your best makes you no better." The pressure released from the room, much to everyone's pleasure, and JX continued. "As you know, it has been three years since _that child_ destroyed all our hard work. However, it appears that we were doing the wrong thing altogether, so he actually did us a favour, even if he did scatter it."

"What of the final part?" a white-scaled being asked in a light tone, her blue eyes falling upon JX. "As you know, they cannot activate out of sequence, we will need to get it soon."

"I am aware of this, Celation, do not worry," JX replied. "I may have failed to get it last time, but that was because I did not have the right tools at my disposal. This time will be different."

"And are you sure you can even control it?" a grey-scaled creature asked. "That device is raw power, but it is only useful if you can control it, else it will consume you."

"Do not patronise me, Gresk," JX hissed. "I am not a fool. I have tested and gauged its power, and I have deduced that I can control it without any trouble if it is only that one piece. Anything more, and I will require something to satisfy it. Now then," the man went on, leaning his elbows on the table. "I have called you here because I require you all to do something." He looked over the group of Zempacki leaders briefly before continuing. "Gresk, have your troops guard the Obsidian Eye on this side, just in case something goes wrong. Calamatis, yours will guard the other side as the first line of defence and aid Gresk's on this side too." Said leaders nodded obediently.

"Torpine, Infernus, I need you two to cause problems for the Dragons in Libras City as a distraction from what we are doing," JX said firmly. "Make sure you destroy the dimensional scanner, or it will all be in vain. Celation, have your troops ready to mobilise if they are needed, otherwise proceed as normal. Thundrax, your technicians had better keep working on awakening those other pieces in preparation for the last one. Cronac, have the Underminers take up positions in the tunnels and prepare for the second stage of disruption to Libras City, and don't let them go ahead of time. Finally, Damcras, your troops will defend the fortress in my absence, so if I come back to a pile of rubble, I know who to blame." The group of leaders did not offer any objection to the orders, so JX went on. "Skywrath, you are to come with me along with a squad of seven Chaos Zempacki of your choosing. Have them ready to leave and stationed by the Obsidian Eye in no more than twenty minutes. Have I made myself clear?"

"It will be done, my Lord," Skywrath bowed.

"Good," JX nodded, satisfied. "In that case, all of you are dismissed."

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><p><em><strong>Karakura Town, World of the Living<strong>_

"One more time," Kai said, focussing himself.

Before him stood the newer form of Ichiruki; the blue bandaged torso and right arm gained from Ichigo's Supreme Release, the wings had gone altogether and the left arm now had a mass of white energy which poured out of the shoulder. Around the left forearm was a gauntlet with the same white energy seeping out of it, and the right arm was bathed in smoky black reiatsu, again from Ichigo's Supreme Release.

"Honestly," the fused being said. "You're pushing yourself a bit hard, aren't you?"

"No, I'm not pushing myself hard enough," the Neo-Vizard replied, his body becoming covered in places with white hierro with red markings over it. "Come on, I have to perfect this damned thing, or it'll be no good!"

"Alright, alright, just get on with it," Ichiruki sighed, a dense black blade extending from the right hand, covering it and jutting out a good metre or so. "You ready, Rukia?"

_Of course I am, baka,_ Rukia responded in their fusion's head; Ichigo had gained the consciousness control for a time, but Rukia still had a say in the control. _Let's go!_

"Right," Ichigo agreed, willing the merged body to move.

Ichiruki dove forwards, weapon cocked back and ready to launch an attack. Kai donned his mask, being sure to wrench the lower jaw away as he did so, and charged up his reiatsu into his legs, a flurry of dark reiatsu building around him. As the twin-minded opponent neared him, Kai vanished in a burst of reiatsu. Ichiruki stopped short, looking around carefully. Suddenly, the air behind them crackled and a loud hollow's roar tore through the air, followed by a forceful eruption of reiatsu and a swing of steel. The sword loosed a large Chaos Wave at Ichiruki, but Rukia took over, gesturing with the left arm and throwing a spray of white reiatsu over the attack, turning it to ice and allowing Ichigo to shatter it with the black sword on the right arm. Kai lunged, clashing with them again and trying to gain the high-ground.

From his position in the training ground, Ed could clearly make out the fight as it unfolded. He had been sparring with Jon, but they were taking a break at that moment, Jon having walked off to find Ella, who had been training with Jess while Alex practiced his hollowfication with the Vizards.

_Looks like they're getting right into the swing of things,_ Ed thought, sat on the tall rock about five hundred metres away from the fighting. _It's been months, and still nothing. I can't help but wonder what's gonna happen, or even when it will..._

He looked behind him as a busty auburn-haired girl entered the large room followed by a bespectacled man and a Hispanic giant. Ed raised a hand to greet them as the group walked forwards.

"They're still fighting?" Uryu asked, bemused. "Where do they get the stamina from?"

"Twin-consciousness is my bet," Ed replied, not moving to the ground but turning his head away from them. "Kai's trying to perfect that Hollow Armour."

"Again?" Uryu raised an eyebrow. "I know that his hollow may be powerful, but isn't that pushing the boundaries of crossing into being a hollow from a Vizard?"

"You may be right, but it's not like he'll listen," Ed shrugged. "Hell, I hate to think what he's going through; I mean, come on, having as much power as Rertyan has crushing down on you must make it strenuous to battle, right?"

Abruptly, before Uryu could offer an answer, a glint of red shone in the distance as a red and black Cero tore through the air towards them. Without hesitation, Orihime raised her Santen Kesshun before the three later arrivals, but leaving Ed exposed as the beam washed over them. When it cleared, the shield fell, and they could see that Ed had raised a wall of fire to intercept it.

"You get used to that," he commented with a shrug. A frown suddenly crossed his features. "Huh, that's new."

Before they could ask what, the fused Ichiruki came heavily crashing over the ground and landed at their feet.

"Ah, I hate it when he does that," the fusion muttered, standing and dusting itself off as Kai arrived, his armour slightly crack and mask split in two, but he was grinning adamantly. "I thought we agreed no more Ceros."

"Oh, come on, I was on a roll!" he grinned, bouncing on the balls of his feet as if he were a character from Street Fighter. "Besides, no one got hurt."

"Actually, you damn near vaporised me, thanks for asking," Ed said, hopping down from his perch.

"My point is, no one actually did kick the bucket, did they?" Kai quickly received a slap to the face from a newly-emerged Rukia.

"Don't be so reckless, baka!" she roared, infuriated. Ichigo chuckled as his girlfriend raged at the hapless Vizard Captain. Eventually, Orihime cut her off.

"Um, Rukia, could you not kill my husband, please?" she asked, but the way she said it made it sound more like 'if you touch him again, I will murder you and everyone you hold dear', and the face she was using, courtesy of lessons with Captain Unohana a few months previous, sent that message through. The Soul Reaper back off, pouting slightly and folding her arms over her modest chest, while Kai removed the armour from his being and hugged Orihime. Ichigo leaned in close to her, thinking of how cute she looked when she pouted like she was.

"Don't sweat it, Rukes," he said softly. "We'll get him next time." Rukia turned to face him and smiled, giving Ichigo a quick, chaste kiss; they may have been going out since the incident with Hueco Mundo and Black Blood, but that did not mean that they openly displayed affection in the same manner as other couples.

"Oh, by the way," Orihime said, still hugging Kai. "Lunch is ready upstairs!"

"Great, I'm starving," Ichigo grinned. Kai lifted Orihime over his shoulder and raised her to the hatch, allowing her to climb the last little bit before scooping her up again and walking into the main room of the shop.

"Excuse me, but does this fine young lady belong to anyone?" he joked, the feeling of adrenaline and euphoria still lingering in his system. He set Orihime down on the nearest cushion and smirked. "Oh, yeah, me." He pressed his lips to hers, giving her a quick kiss as the others walked in.

"For God's sake, get a room, you two," Ed commented sharply, though he had a jokey grin on his face.

"Already have one, thank you," Kai grinned back. Jon hit him in the back of the head, making Kai turn around to his friend.

"Come on, man, people are eating here," Jon smirked. "No one wants to see you two play 'tonsil tennis'." Kai and Orihime blushed at the crude reference, but said nothing, Urahara beating them to it.

"On the contrary, Jon," he commented behind his fan. "It is rather refreshing to see such young love, especially in a married couple such as your friends."

"You're such a pervert, Kisuke," Ichigo said gruffly, swallowing his mouthful. Yoruichi grinned across the table to the young Captain, her feline irises showing her pleasure at the impending tease.

"Better to be a pervert than to be a prude like yourself, Ichigo," she smiled. Ichigo flushed but quickly retorted.

"I am not a prude!" he raised his voice. "So what if I'm not as open about that kind of stuff as you or Urahara? It's not wrong, is it?"

"No, it's just very uncommon in this day and age," Ed offered. Half of the group snickered.

"Well, I like that you're not so crude in your thoughts, Ichigo," Rukia smiled softly, another of the pair's small gestures of public affection.

He smiled, knowing that her upbringing in the Kuchiki household had made her less likely to enjoy such crudeness of mind in public, and, though her words and actions were full of vigour, that was the Soul Reaper side to her which negated the Kuchiki side in times such as this.

"I know, Rukes," he returned her smile.

Somewhere further around the table, Jon and Ella shared a soft, quick kiss, smiling at the similar actions of the elder couple. Ed chewed on an onigiri thoughtfully for a moment, then turned his attention to Kai.

"Why is it you're so serious when you train, then go goofy the moment you stop and Orihime's there?" he asked. Kai frowned at him, swallowing a rather large amount of wasabi which had slipped into his mouth and giving him a slightly strained sound to his voice.

"There's hardly any reason to be serious when nothing serious is happening," he reasoned philosophically. Ed chuckled, shaking his head, and was about to finish the rice ball in his hand, when a mass tremor of reiatsu arced over the Urahara Shoten, the rumbling sound of rolling thunder overhead. The group froze and turned their attention outside as the surge stopped. "The hell was that?"

"Was it a Garganta?" Rukia wondered aloud, but a second wave of reiatsu rolled free over the shop.

"That one was more powerful," Ichigo noted. "It's like something's building up or pushing through a wall." Ella looked uneasily at the other ex-members of the Sanctuary.

"You don't think," she started, but Kai was on his feet as a third ripple passed through the air, again larger than the last.

"I can feel him," he said. Ed, Jon, Ella and Jess all looked at him with a knowing look on their faces, while the others shared looks of confusion.

"Feel who?" Uryu asked.

"Don't you remember; when we first met, that guy I told you about?" Kai asked quickly.

"The one that gave you that scar on your chest?" Ichigo asked. Kai nodded. "I thought he disappeared after you defeated him last time?"

"Obviously he made his way back to Alkahmia," Kai mused. Ichigo raised an eyebrow.

"Al-what-ia?" he questioned.

"There's no time to explain now," he said. "We'll do it en route. Orihime, stay here, just in case something goes wrong." She nodded and kissed her husband goodbye before he left his body. "Kisuke, look after my body; I'm going to go say hi to our 'friends'."

"We're coming too," Ed said, the rest of the Sanctuary standing and ejecting from their bodies. Kai nodded, accepting their decision while Ichigo, Rukia, Chad and Uryu stood up too, deciding to join the group. Kai smiled slightly in spite of the situation, but another large torrent of reiatsu burst forth, cutting the moment short.

"Alright, let's go," he said, leading them into the air. "Ed, contact the Vizards and get Alex to meet us at the crash site as soon as he can!"

Several kilometres above the town, a slight bulge was emerging in the skyline. As the waves of reiatsu increased in intensity, the bulge grew in size, black cracks slowing spider-webbing over the mass as it grew, until it started to fracture and flake away. Finally, it burst open, the glass-like fragments shattering and revealing a black centred portal with a flaring red outer edge and the ten figures stood there. The most humanoid of them wore his usual armour and cape, although his left arm now bore an unusual extra amount of metallic skin over the shoulder with a circular socket in the front. The group looked around as they stepped out, followed by a group of a further twenty five dragon-like shapes. JX turned to the troops and gave them an icy look.

"Listen up," he growled. "If you dare let down your guard even briefly or let the enemy escape through the Obsidian Eye, I will personally tear you limb from limb and make sure that you prefer death in the field in future." The group of Chaos Zempacki shivered, even the ones that were not on guard duty. "The rest of you, the same threat holds if you hold back anything in this coming fight. And stay out of my way, or I'll destroy you there and then. Now, look sharp, it looks like our enemies have arrived." Sure enough, Kai arrived ahead of the group, glaring darkly at JX. "Ah, just as I expected, the great Kai Friel. Let's get back to our little sparring session."

"Come on, then," Kai replied. "Let's finish this stupid fight!"

The two of them disappeared, leaving the newly arrived Soul Reapers and their allies stood opposing the Zempacki troops. One rather nervous looking Zempacki stepped up to the larger of the ranks, the metal right arm emitting a mild ticking noise as he analysed the situation.

"S- Sir?" the creature stammered. "W- What should we do with th- these ones?"

"The orange-haired one is mine," Skywrath replied. "Each of you, pick a target and slaughter them; the sooner we finish this, the sooner we can get the part and get out of this pathetic waste of a dimension. Now, go!"

The groups split up, each one taking a foe and drawing their respective weapons. Above the others by about twenty kilometres, JX and Kai stood, weapons drawn.

"That's an interesting armour you have there," Kai noted. JX smiled courteously.

"Thank you," he returned. "A newly acquired item of unspeakable rarity. I'll be frank, it was very hard to get the damned thing. Anyway, enough with the polite conversations. Shall I release my Shikai, or would you rather we fight it out like enemies should? You always were particularly foolhardy and wanted to fight on par with your enemies."

"Sure, bring it on," Kai nodded, brandishing his zanpakuto, red energy wreathing it. "Awaken, Supernova Dragon."

"Kill them all, Hellraiser!" JX commanded, the scythe taking shape in a flurry of dark blue light. "Now, come at me with all you have, Kai Friel, or I will destroy you here and now."

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><p><em>Hope you liked this for a starting chapter. It felt slow to start, but I hope that wasn't the case.<em>

_Anyway, tell me what you thought and also feel free to PM me or review with any questions you have about this, the characters or any of my works. I don't mind clearing up any queries you may have._

_I hope to post again soon, until then, good night!_


	2. The Power of Destruction

_**Disclaimer: **I do not own Bleach, Tite Kubo does. However, note that anything not of the Manga/Anime (unless I point out otherwise) is of my own design, including my OCs Kai, Rertyan and the Sanctuary Team._

_**Warnings: **Contains slight romantic reference, swearing and violence throughout._

_**Brief: **Just over a year has passed since the initial incident which brought Kai to Karakura, and it seems his past just will not leave him alone. An old adversary's return forces the group into a new world, but something has changed. Can they work together to stop the ultimate evil from destroying their homes, or will darkness fall over the dimensions?_

_**Pairings: **KaiHime, Ichiruki_

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><p><strong>Bleach; the Doomsday Tomes<strong>

**Chapter 2: The Power of Destruction**

By the river, a fair distance away from the action taking place, a certain dark-haired Kurosaki took another running kick into the football, propelling the leather object towards the goal with lethal velocity. She let out a roar of victory as the ball grazed passed the goalkeeper's fingertips and into the waiting mouth of the goal just as the timer went off, announcing a victory for her team.

"Great game, guys!" Karin called, grabbing her ball and putting it in the net which she used to carry it. "Same time next week?"

"You got it, Karin!" one of her friends announced, waving goodbye to her as she left the pitch. She had not gone far when she felt something about the air shift. She looked into the sky, seeing dark clouds gathering near the centre of Karakura. "What on Earth is going on here?" As she wondered this, a strong wind blew up and washed over her, the air laced with Ichigo and Rukia's reiatsus. Karin's eyes widened. "Ichi-nii? What the hell is he doing there?"

Soon the wind eased off, and the eleven-year-old started on her way home again, this time at a faster pace, knowing that if her brother was at the centre of the trouble, there was nothing to worry about, as it was likely being dealt with. Up above, however, things were not going quite as smoothly as the group had hoped.

"Getsuga Tenshou!" Ichigo roared, arcing Tensa Zangetsu's black blade at his opponent, but the Chaos Zempacki brought his own sword down upon the attack, splitting it. "I'll ask you again; who the hell are you?"

"That's an unusual attack," the Zempacki said, again ignoring the Squad Five Captain. "The density was very high, but the power was pathetic at best. If you want to pierce out hides, it will take more than that, human."

"Stop ignoring me!" Ichigo barked. "I am Ichigo Kurosaki, Captain of the Fifth Squad in the Gotei Fourteen. Now, tell me who you are!"

"See, was that so hard?" the creature grinned. "My name is Skywrath; I am Lord JX's second in command and the Head of the Zempacki Raiding team known as Chaos Void."

"Zempacki?" Ichigo questioned. "You're one of them?"

"A Chaos Zempacki, to be precise, but yes," Skywrath replied. "Now, I think I shall give you the pleasure of dying at my first release, seeing as how you were nice enough to show me your 'Bankai', as you called it." Skywrath turned his sword upside-down, reminiscent, Ichigo noted, of Byakuya's Bankai preparation, and ran his left hand up the blade, a red glow emanating from it as he did so. "Disengage Primera Lock!"

The red colour faded, replaced by a ring of golden-red chains which ran through the air around Skywrath without touching him. Suddenly, a black padlock appeared in front of him, which promptly burst open, and the ring exploded away from him in all directions, creating a spray of crimson all around. At first, nothing, then a blast of reiatsu followed the same explosive movement as a black and red energy wreathed the katana blade, the energy dancing wildly like a tribal dancer around a flame, and this sudden occurrence made Ichigo pause, giving him the perfect chance to move ahead and strike.

The change was instantly clear to the young Captain, as his adversary's speed abruptly increased, the Zempacki vanishing briefly before his eyes found him again, the energy-wreathed katana arcing through the air towards him. Ichigo blocked with the black blade, but a series of sparks lit up around the locked weapons, and Ichigo struggled against the heavy-handed swing, marvelling slightly at the forceful, virile attack, and noting that his weapon was becoming increasingly hotter from when it first made contact with the energy shroud. Roaring as he channelled his reiatsu into his weapon, Ichigo swung Tensa Zangetsu with all his power, breaking the lock he had been in with Skywrath. He donned his mask quickly while his opponent was recovering, but it did not take long before the demon was back on the prowl. Ichigo let out another, now hollowfied, battle cry, his darkened reiatsu pouring out of Tensa Zangetsu's obsidian blade, wreathing it in a similar manner to Skywrath's own, before slashing at the air with malice behind him. Skywrath blocked the hit with one of his own, which glanced off of Ichigo's zanpakuto and left his open to attack. Ichigo released his left hand from the sword's grip and pointed his index finger under his right arm at Skywrath, three light beams of deep crimson quickly spinning up about the digit, forming a dense sphere of black with a distinct red tint, much like his reiatsu.

"Cero Oscuras!" he shouted, firing the dark 'doom blast' into Skywrath.

The Zempacki made no attempt to stop his attack and evade, instead bringing the sword in a downward arc and intercepting the ray, gritting his teeth under the force of it. As the beam's energy began to deplete, he finally broke free of it, splitting it in two. Both parties stood ready, each showing few signs of exhaustion.

"You're one hell of a fighter, Kurosaki, I'll give you that," Skywrath complimented. "And such control over your hollow too; it is most impressive. But," Skywrath's face changed to a rather dark, serious expression. "Why are you so intent on stopping us? We have no gripes with you, your family, not even this 'Soul Society' place. So, what makes you fight so forcefully?"

"You forgot two things," Ichigo replied, his glare never once wavering. "First of all, you just appeared from nowhere above my town, which is reason enough to fight back, and also your people are threatening my friends. That is why I am facing you, Skywrath!" The orange-haired Captain charged at the Zempacki, swinging forcefully downward, but his opponent blocked, making no move to counter.

"You should think carefully before you say that," Skywrath sighed. "I mean, come now, do you really believe that those weaklings or that boy fighting Lord JX are your friends?" Ichigo blinked from behind his mask and hesitated in replying, so the Zempacki pressed on. "So, you do doubt some of them, eh? That is probably wise, else you might be shocked when they turn on you."

"Shut up!" Ichigo barked, breaking the sword lock and recommencing the fighting fiercely.

While the others fought beneath the cloud line, their opponents unreleased for the most part, sparks rained down over JX and Kai as the curved blade of JX's scythe scraped against Supernova's glowing edge, each combatant putting all their power into their swings. JX and Kai had both donned their masks by this point, their hollowfied reiatsu pressing down on the people beneath them, and the scythe-wielding fiend grinned behind his mask, pointing a finger at Kai as they parted by a few metres, a blue spark of electricity swirling around his digit. Kai followed suit, the six-point-focussed Cero spinning much faster than JX's, and fired at the same time as his opposite. The collision of the Twisted Cero and the Dark Fate Cero's beams created a large explosion which shifted the clouds beneath them and stirred up a light fog around them. JX held his ground.

"I know that you are hiding something from me," he said in his usual, somewhat regal tone. "Your zanpakuto has changed slightly, though how I am not sure. Not that it matters, I suppose." He could make out Kai's silhouette in the fog. "Show me this new power of yours; fight me with everything you have at your disposal!"

Kai was taken aback by this, but the knew that if the battle lasted too much longer, it would prove dangerous, especially with the build up of opposing pressures from all-too-similar reiatsus clashing like they currently were, so simply smirked a little, his body glowing a deep red as he forced out his reiatsu to it's maximum.

"Alright then, but you asked for this," he said, drawing the Enigma Cypher out of his being, his body pulsing with reiatsu. "Enigma activate!" The reiatsu changed started to focus on Kai's left hand, turning red as it did so, before he slammed the device in his right hand into it. "Cypher unlock!"

The display turned red and shattered, pulsing around Kai in a sphere and wildly lacing his body, which was now glowing a deep blue and his zanpakuto bursting into flames. JX grinned at this, but his features folded into neutrality again when Kai lunged at him without any change to his zanpakuto physically. The scythe intercepted sharply, but JX misjudged the power behind the swing and found his zanpakuto forced down, the tip of the sword nicking his shoulder and leaving a shallow, angry mark down the front of his right shoulder. He grimaced, but swung back in a counter attack, forcing Kai back and charging after his positive alternate. Kai grinned, focussing his reiatsu entirely into the Shikai in his hands, a bright white glow pulsing over the zanpakuto, and uttered four words with pleasure as JX's eyes widened with shock;

"Supernova Dragon, Supreme Release!"

The energy burst forwards before encircling Kai completely, his form changing quickly into that of Hypernova Dragon. He grabbed the sword as it solidified in the air beside him, then lunged at the stunned JX, cutting across his chest and leaving a bloody trail in the flesh. He swung to strike the left shoulder, hoping to disable the arm, but the sword rebounded off of the shoulder plate there. He masked his confusion and went back on the offensive, flames wreathing his blade as he struck this way and that, leaving a series of marks on JX without sustaining anything more than a slight graze from his opponent. Kai struck JX around the face with the flat of his sword, making the fiend spin away while he backed off, red-white flames pulsing over the sword while tendrils of lightning trailing off of it too as he reeled back his weapon.

"Hypernova Dragon, Thunder Wave!" he shouted, throwing everything he had into his attack as he arced his blade downwards.

A blast of flame, reshi and lightning, the twisted mass of which had an intense magnitude to it, hurtled towards JX as he turned to it again, striking him with a powerful hit full-on and exploding with the sound of a furious dragon roaring to the skies, the ball of fire scorching the being trapping inside the searing prison. When the flames had died and the smoke faded, JX became visible, his skin and clothing charred and bloody, his right sleeve destroyed mid-way up his upper arm, the chest-plate cracked in three places. Remarkably, and also much to Kai's confusion, the shoulder plate which hung on the left shoulder was unmarked and intact in all it's mismatching glory.

"That's one tough bit of armour," Kai commented, shouldering his weapon. "I'm impressed by how well you took that attack too."

"Pah," JX scoffed, spitting a thick spray of sanguine out of his throat. "Channelling my Twisted Cero into Hellraiser cancelled it out pretty well, I suppose." Kai eyed the scythe, the blade of which was shattered and the bone-like staff split in two, the rear blade section having fallen away in the attack.

"Hate to break it to you, but it cost you the use of your Shikai," he noted. "You won't be able to fight with it any more." JX looked at his mangled zanpakuto, which reverted to its original state in a red glow.

"No matter," he shrugged back, sheathing the blade. "That is why I have this." He tapped the shoulder plate three times with his knuckles, a dull, hollow thud of metal resonating from it with each tap. "I can tell you are curious as to what it is; for it to have survived that attack of yours unscathed and without even a hint of damage or any markings to suggest that it has been hit. I can see it in your eyes, and I know that you don't recognise it. Perhaps this will jog your memory, seeing as how you are the one who 'destroyed' it in the first place!"

Kai's eyes shot wide open as JX reached behind him and pulled out a cylindrical item which was silver and metallic on the outer edge and housed a sphere which was a red-orange hue with a black 'X' shape in the centre. From the far side of the item, a fairly short pink-purple tendril hung limp behind it, four small, curved teeth jutting from the tentacle, matching the holes inside of the socket in the panel of armour.

"It can't be," Kai murmured, a feeling of dread welling-up within his core. JX grinned.

"Oh, but it is," the fiend replied, bringing the item level with the socket, the tendril pulling towards it and slotting into the port, a good tension holding it suspended between JX's grip and the socket. "Behold, Kai Friel, the true form of the Left Arm of Destruction!"

"Stop this now, JX!" Kai pleaded, but his ulterior self wrenched the outer casing away, the item inside pulling into the socket and a dark red panel closing over it.

At first, nothing, then JX howled in pain, falling to one knee, a thin line appearing briefly on the panel before the two halves parted. Inside was a single eye, the cross closed except for a single black pupil at the centre of the unusually coloured, bloodshot eye. The shoulder plate developed the same deep red hue as the eyelid on its front, before the left sleeve of JX's clothing tore itself to shreds, as did the section two inches from the plate on his torso. A brief pause, then the plate emitted a roar of its own, a deep, low growl as if the creature were trapped inside a cave, and JX's cries of agony echoed over the battlefield. Below them, the combatants began to wonder what was going on, but none gave any ground to their opponents. The plate released a series of pink-purple tentacles, which wrapped around the entire length of JX's arm and bit into his collar and the join of his shoulder to his torso. The mass of tentacles twisted together around his digits, forming black claws at the tips. Finally, with this done, JX stood upright again, his breath short and sharp, his face sweat-coated while the forearm and the back of his left hand secreted a luminous green liquid which shifted and shaped into red armour plates with black spikes and a dark grey panel in the forearm, in which the spikes resided, and Kai stared on in abject horror at the sight of the newly formed arm.

"Wh- What the hell is that?" Kai asked, his tone a mixture of horror, slight fear and disgust at the disfigured item.

"I told you," JX replied, his voice strained as he recovered from the pain of the melding. "This is the first part of the Impendium Crucible; the Left Arm of Destruction; also referred to as the Wanderer's Anchor when in it's docile state. And the power of this, my foolish alter ego, is indescribable. Let me show you what I mean."

Kai lost sight of the man briefly, but a searing pain shot through his back and he shot forwards as the fist was brought heavily into his back. He felt a sickening crunch, and knew instantly that the armour beneath his left wing was shattered, along with his third and fourth ribs on the same side. He spun around and lashed out with the space where JX had been, but, much to his shock and bewilderment, the fiend was gone. He twisted again in the air, catching sight of his opponent as he threw a punch into his chest, sending him sprawling back under the force by several metres. He twisted to grind to a stop, drawing his left hand over his face and drawing out his mask quickly, his form darkening and becoming wreathed in flames as he thrust himself forward, wings extended.

_He may have gotten more powerful,_ Kai thought, his grip tightening around the sword as JX charged at him, Hellraiser still sheathed at his left hip. _But with Rertyan's power behind me as well as Supernova's, I can't be stopped. He got some lucky hits in, but he won't stand a chance against Dark Nova Dragon._

Kai was taken aback when his blade reached JX's arm, surprised that he had not changed his course and shocked when the blade ground across the left arm, sparks flying wildly, but without even a hint of damage to it. He sprung backwards and lined up another strike, utilising Rertyan's Sonido and his own Shunpo to vanish in a flurry of reiatsu, using his Screech Step swiftly to finish the battle. He appeared just behind JX, releasing the reiatsu in a wall which repelled the fiend, then thrusting his obsidian blade into JX's shoulder, the sound of metal sheering and splintering echoing over the air.

Kai's eyes shot open as he stared at the sword in his hand, or rather what remained of it, for the blade had been the thing which shattered in a hail of black steel, the tattered stump still pressed to the back of JX's left shoulder.

"Th... That's..." Words failed him as JX's cold grey irises fell upon him, a mild amusement in them as he did.

"_'That's impossible'_, right?" he finished, taking Kai's stunned expression as confirmation. "I hate to disappoint, but that isn't the case any more. I am aware of how powerful you believe you are, but the fact is that better warriors have been consumed by this armour, and their power is what I now wield." JX moved swiftly, back-handing Kai with his left hand and shattering his mask, leaving only his Supreme Release with a broken weapon, no helmet and a bruised face. Then he gripped him by the neck, Hellraiser in his right hand. "Now, I have grown bored of this farce, and I have business to attend to. Goodbye, Kai Friel; I will not miss you."

The blade plunged downwards and arched into Kai's chest, a huge amount of power crashing down over the Vizard Captain as he began his rapid descent towards the surface, while the storm clouds hurled their venomous liquid down beside him. As he fell, one word passed through Kai's mind, his voice failed and his body torn;

_Dammit._

* * *

><p><em>This took some time due to a series of coursework for Electronics being finished today, but I have paperwork to do still, so I may be slow to post for a while. Sorry about that.<em>

_Anyway, please be sure to tell me what you think, whether that be compliments or criticism, I don't mind either way._

_For now, see you guys and girls later, and I'll post again real soon if I can._


	3. Scars of Defeat

_**Disclaimer: **I do not own Bleach, Tite Kubo does. However, note that anything not of the Manga/Anime (unless I point out otherwise) is of my own design, including my OCs Kai, Rertyan and the Sanctuary Team._

_**Warnings: **Contains slight romantic reference, swearing and violence throughout._

_**Brief: **Just over a year has passed since the initial incident which brought Kai to Karakura, and it seems his past just will not leave him alone. An old adversary's return forces the group into a new world, but something has changed. Can they work together to stop the ultimate evil from destroying their homes, or will darkness fall over the dimensions?_

_**Pairings: **KaiHime, Ichiruki_

* * *

><p><strong>Bleach; the Doomsday Tomes<strong>

**Chapter 3: Scars of Defeat**

Ichigo's black blade crashed into Skywrath's inflamed weapon, the force of the pair of them sending shockwaves throughout the battlefield. Nearby, Ed slashed through his Zempacki opponent's chest, the hot blade cutting through the creature's hide with little trouble, a trickle of blood leaking from his left eyebrow. He turned his attention towards the sky line as a figure fell from the clouds and the rain began to fall. Seeing the shape of the dark silouhette, his eyes widened fearfully.

"Kai... lost?" he questioned before moving to help his friend. A trio of blasts of blue light shot Kai in quick succession, sending him down sharply into a derelict building in Karakura, the concrete crumpling behind him and toppling over as he passed through the skyscraper. "Dammit." Ed headed towards Jon and Ella, getting their attention by distracting the Zempacki fighting them with a burst of flames. "Did you see that?"

"Wouldn't believe it if I hadn't," Jon replied.

"Good," he nodded. "In that case, I want both of you to go down there and get him back in order; I'll deal with these two." Jon raised an eyebrow but nodded and took Ella with him to the crash site. The Zempacki went to chase them, but a jet of flame came between them and their targets. They turned to face Ed, who grinned tauntingly at them. "Hello boys. Looks like someone needs to teach you some manners."

"You think you can stand up to the Chaos Void's second and third?" one of the creatures asked. Ed cocked his head.

"Second and third, eh?" he asked. "I take it you've diengaged your Primera locks, so I guess I should give you the courtesy of witnessing true power; let me show you my Bankai, Zempacki."

The sword in Ed's hand sputtered as the flames stopped briefly, then a huge wall of fire shot out, engulfing the entirety of Ed's being. The flames began to subside as the teenager's power levelled out. Ed smirked as the Zempacki as they backed away, slightly taken aback by this sudden transformation.

Ed's Bankai took the shape of a pair of red armoured gauntlets over his forearms and hands, a matching chest plate and pair of boots, the gauntlets chained to the chest plate. The gauntlets featured a flame jet unit under the arm, the muzzles finished in gold while the rest was red, and four similar items extended with two stacks on each shoulder blade, the top ones longer than the bottom. The chest had a silver twin-doored circular bulkhead in the centre, and around Ed's forehead was a red headband with two long tails hanging loose from it, with a bronze-coloured pendant in the middle, the image of a fist wreathed in flames evident on it. Every panel glinted red as a gold trim made itself prominent on the armour.

"This is Infernal God's Fist, the Bankai of my Solar Spear," Ed announced to the shocked creatures. "Now, come at me with everything you have, or you will die with regrets."

"Don't get cocky, kid," one of the creatures snarled, lunging forward to fight the young warrior.

Far below, Jon and Ella were scouring the rubble where Kai had crashed through Karakura. Finally, they found him. The Neo-Vizard lay on the ground in amongst the wreckage of buildings which he had slammed into on his way down, his body pulsing with red electricity, his Supreme Release partially active, but the sword was shattered, the armour was heavily damaged, and the right wing appeared to have been mostly vaporised in the Cero during his plummet. The young man's breathing seemed greatly laboured, his face contorted into a mask of abject pain with every weak sucking in of air and passing breath escaping his lungs. Ella crouched beside the wounded Vizard, a orange glow emanating from her hands as she used her reiatsu to trace the damage throughout Kai's body.

"This is bad," she said, more to herself than anyone else, though Jon took notice of her words. "The wounds are deeper than he's ever had; broken collar bone, three ribs cracked, his left arm is dislocated... He's in bad shape; I'm not sure I can heal him and have him fighting soon."

"Do what you can," Jon replied, hoisting his warhammer to rest upon his shoulder. "Even if he can't fight now, we can't have him die on us yet."

"I know," Ella replied, picking up the gold cutlass of her Shikai, a bright yellow-white glow spreading over it. "I'll try using Redeemer; it might not fully fix him, but it should stop him bleeding to death at the least."

The blade plunged into Kai's chest with a flash of bright light. Yellow sparks pulsed over the fallen warrior, the red energy subsiding as the healing power of Judgement Bringer combated the worst of the damage. Kai's breathing eased with a spluttered cough, his release glowing red and dissipating into reshi around him, leaving a cracked Supernova Dragon beside the teenager.

"Ok," Ella breathed, her reiatsu lowered drastically from the move. "That did it. Let's-"

"Cru... cible," Kai breathed, cutting her off. "He has... the... Crucible."

Jon and Ella's eyes both widened in shock.

"What did you say?" Jon asked, bemused by these words, but Kai's head slumped to the side as he fell unconscious where he lay. He looked up at the clouds where Kai had fallen from, fear in his eyes. "How can that be? I thought we destroyed the Impendium Crucible."

"Jon," Ella said firmly. "We have to get Kai back to Urahara's; I can't do anything else for him here."

"Alright," Jon relented. "Let's be quick though."

With their friend over Jon's shoulder, the pair of them disappeared in a burst of Shunpo. Far above, JX gazed down upon the battles below, from Ed fighting two Zempacki effectively to Skywrath and Ichigo locking blades, satisfied by the effort of his forces. Before long, he vanished from sight, leaving the battlefield behind as wave of reiatsu pulsed over the area as Skywrath and Ichigo struck against one another again. Skywrath grinned.

"You have a lot of power, Kurosaki," he remarked, striking one more time at Ichigo, Tensa Zangetsu's blade intercepting the swipe without a hitch. "You would do well with the Zempacki Legions."

"Sorry, I'm already with a group of people," Ichigo replied. "And I think I prefer Soul Society to you."

"A pity; to let such power and talent go to waste would be a shame, but if you are resigned to this, so be it." Skywrath raised his sword and held it horizontally in front of him, a deep red-blue hue enveloping the blade. "Disengage Segunda Lock!"

The energy overflowed from the sword as a series of black chains splintered from around Skywrath, just like when he released the Primera Lock. In the burst of energy, Ichigo released his Supreme Release preparation form, readying himself to counter the new state of Zempacki release. When the displacement of energy had passed, Skywrath's sword had changed to become a much larger, black double-edged sword, more like a Bastard Sword than a katana, with red runes glowing along the length of the blade. He raised the weapon and pointed it at Ichigo's head.

"Don't blink," he growled. "Don't hesitate for a second. If you do, you will die here and now."

"Don't underestimate me either, Zempacki!" Ichigo replied sharply.

Ichigo pushed off of the air, bringing his blade swinging towards Skywrath but finding nothing there. The flat of a blade slammed into his back and sent him whirling, allowing the assailant to cut downwards into Ichigo's back, a spray of crimson erupting from the wound. Ichigo turned and swung again, but his blade struck another and bounced away under the impact. This left Ichigo open as another swing came in towards his chest.

A thickly armoured gauntlet pushed the oncoming blade aside, and another struck Skywrath in the face, forcing him away. Looking to the newcomer, Ichigo spotted Ed standing there.

"Never thought he would go this far out," he said, more to himself than Ichigo, then turned to his ally. "You have to be careful with him in this form; if you lose track of him for even a second, it could be the end of you. Stay focussed, and allow me to fight with you."

Ichigo smiled slightly.

"You got it," he said, raising his sword again. "Let's-"

A crushing sensation washed over them as a humanoid figure appeared beside Skywrath. He wore a thick armoured shoulder plate with an eye rolling within a socket on the front, and held a conical metal device in his left hand. He placed his right hand on Skywrath's shoulder.

"Master JX," the Zempacki said, bemused.

"We have what we came for," the man said firmly. "We're going back now." Skywrath looked ready to argue, but said nothing, instead blowing a small red whistle, a piercing screech echoing over the battlefield. In a matter of moments, the Zempacki forces had all gathered at their portal, exiting through quickly in a retreat. "It was fun, insects, but now we have claimed what we needed from this pathetic place. Farewell, puny humans."

And with that, the gateway closed around them, leaving the combatants staring at the space where they had once been. Ichigo broke the stunned silence with a growl.

"Dammit," he cursed, returning to his unreleased state. And dropping to ground level with the others. "Come on, let's go back to Urahara; whatever's going on, we have to assess our next step."

* * *

><p><em><strong>Later, Urahara Shoten<strong>_

"So that's what that thing was?" Ed asked. "I had no idea that it was still in one piece."

"It isn't," Kai growled, his wounds being treated beneath the orange barrier Orihime had established. "It's in five parts; by the sound of it, when they came with the Black Hollow, it was to find and reclaim the last bit, but they didn't have the strength to until the first part was activated."

"Yeah, you did take quite a beating, huh?" Jon commented, his arm folded. "By the way, how do you feel?"

"Like shit," the man grunted. "Who's got the next stupid question?"

"What the hell happened up there?" Ichigo asked. "I thought you said that he couldn't beat you if you can go a level higher."

"That's under the assumption that he can only use his zanpakuto," Kai replied, rubbing the back of his neck. "You probably don't know this, but there is a weapon more powerful than that of the Hogyoku."

"What?" Uryu questioned. "Something stronger than that?"

"It's plausible," Urahara's voice stated as he appeared in the room. "The Hogyoku Aizen used had the power of many thousands of hollows within it. Furthermore, it had the power of another Hogyoku as well inside it. That power was enough to transcend the barrier of hollow and Soul Reaper, but that does not make it an absolute power by any means."

"That's right," Ed nodded. "Something like the Impendium Crucible absorbs offerings, since it was originally seen as an idol of gods; great warriors would be put into it at the end of their lives, criminals were executed in it if they were of noble blood. In this manner, their power was absorbed and their strength fused with it. However, that is the inert form of the Impendium Crucible."

"If that's all the power it has, then it should be no problem; it wasn't much more powerful than Aizen after he merged with the Hogyoku," Ichigo said. Kai shook his head as Orihime's barrier lifted.

"You're an idiot," he said simply. "That power was from one of the five pieces and an unreleased zanpakuto." Ichigo's eyes widened, but Kai went on. "Besides, it took the pair of us in full power to stop Aizen in that form; the Impendium Crucible is sometimes called the Godly Armour of Demons, mostly because it's dark power being acclaimed to be an indefinite dark power, but also because, as is thought with a god, only its user may damage it. Which means that only if I manage to become more powerful will we make a dent in it."

"You're saying that nothing we do will damage him?" Chad asked. Kai nodded.

"Then what do we do?" Rukia asked. "We can't let something like that come together; it could well spell disaster for the World of the Living or even Seireitei."

"Agreed," Ichigo said. "We should mount an offensive before it's too late."

"If those components have to activate," Renji added. "The sooner we move out, the better."

"Then it's settled," Kai said, sheathing his now-repaired zanpakuto behind him. "However, on the way, we have to make a detour, else our actions will be in vain."

"Where to?" Jon asked. Kai's eyes were dark as he turned.

"The Ashen Abyss," he said plainly. "Everyone, prepare to move out in twenty minutes, and no more."

The group dispersed except for Ichigo and Rukia, the latter of which had walked over to the former. Rukia sighed, turning her gaze from Ichigo. He caught on to this response and spoke up first.

"You don't like this either, huh?" he said. Rukia looked up at him, her eyes full of worry, her guard dropped in the same fashion she always did when it was only them.

"It was bad enough when Aizen was that powerful," she said. "I... I don't want something like that to happen again."

Ichigo hooked his hand beneath her chin, raising her head to his eyes.

"It'll be okay," he said. "I won't let that happen again." Rukia smiled up at him and they shared a brief hug, before returning to normal. "Come on," he said finally. "Let's get ready to go; at this rate, we won't be able to stop that creep."

* * *

><p><em>Sorry this took so long, but I've just started my exams and time is tight at the minute.<em>

_Anyway, I hope people are enjoying this instalment (though I'm aware that this is nowhere near as popular as my other works), and hopefully it will gain popularity amongst others before long._

_It may be a while before my next update on this story, but I will be writing when I can; just be patient._


	4. Unyielding Rage

_**Disclaimer: **I do not own Bleach, Tite Kubo does. However, note that anything not of the Manga/Anime (unless I point out otherwise) is of my own design, including my OCs Kai, Rertyan and the Sanctuary Team._

_**Warnings: **Contains slight romantic reference, swearing and violence throughout._

_**Brief: **Just over a year has passed since the initial incident which brought Kai to Karakura, and it seems his past just will not leave him alone. An old adversary's return forces the group into a new world, but something has changed. Can they work together to stop the ultimate evil from destroying their homes, or will darkness fall over the dimensions?_

_**Pairings: **KaiHime, Ichiruki_

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN: **I'm not sure how popular this is with people, but to those who give a crap, sorry this took so long; I had exams since May, and my energy was focussed more on the more popular Bleach story (**Darkest Side of Me**) in my free time. So, sorry about that hiccup, but I have some free time for now, so I should come up with some new chapters soon._

* * *

><p><strong>Bleach; the Doomsday Tomes<strong>

**Chapter 4: Unyielding Rage, the Power of Chaos**

The small group had gathered outside of the Urahara Shoten by the time the last of the group joined them; to everyone's amazement, it was Uryu who had appeared last The archer had changed his attire, wearing something which, at first glance, looked like his usual Quincy outfit, but there were a few adjustments obvious as the Soul Reapers observed him; the single belt which held the multiple Seele Schneider on the Quincy's person now crossed a second, wider belt, holding ten of the bladed arrows and ten Ginto between them, a blue Quincy cross was plastered over the back of his cape, and Uryu's right hand was covered in a white glove with the same blue cross on the back of the hand as on his back and four small silver protrusions around the arm just before the wrist. Ichigo coked his head and raised an eyebrow.

"What's with the new get up?" he asked. "And that glove?"

"You should know by now how important it is to prepare for battle, Kurosaki," Uryu replied, adjusting his glasses. The Soul Reaper kept his blank look, causing the archer to sigh exasperatedly. "Perhaps not. Regardless, as a Quincy, I must ensure that I am ready in battle dress for this eventuality. As for the glove, you no doubt remember the Sanrei Glove I used in Soul Society when we went to rescue Kuchiki..." Ichigo's blank look left him less than enthusiastic about this. "You truly are useless, Kurosaki."

"Hey! In my defence, you never explained anything about that thing!" Ichigo snapped. The young Captain huffed, calming down, then spoke up again. "So, it's a Quincy enhancer, is that right?"

"It's a little more than that," Uryu replied. "But that is the idea. Unfortunately, I have not had enough time to train using its fullest abilities." Ichigo smirked.

"What's this?" he mocked. "The great Quincy hasn't trained properly with an item he is about to use? That doesn't sound like you, Ishida!"

"Urusai!" Uryu snarled. "Enough with your hypocrisy, Soul Reaper!"

"'My hypocrisy'?" Ichigo growled back. "I'll have you know I have been trying since we finished Aizen in Hueco Mundo! Let's see, who was most useless then... Ah, that's right, you, oh pride-filled Quincy!"

"You-"

"Would you two shut up over there!" Jon barked, a tick mark on his forehead. "We're working here, dammit!"

The Quincy and Captain glared at each other, but stayed silent. Rukia walked over to the troops from the Sanctuary, coking her head in confusion; the five of them, since Kai was not doing the same, each had a metal disc unfolded on the floor before them with a pillar rising from the centre. Atop the pillar was a red button, and each person was stood calibrating a gauntlet-like device with various buttons pulsing and the screen flashing up several different things in quick succession; too quick to read.

"What are you all doing?" Rukia asked. Ed grinned as his gauntlet started to whir, a blue light on the front flashing in time with the red button on his disc. He gestured for the short Lieutenant to come over as he explained.

"These," he said. "Are what we call Teleport Discs. From what I hear, they work a little like a Senkai Gate, but they can go to more places. Each one has to be paired with a control pad, which is what these gauntlets are, then we can use them to take us to any dimension, provided that you know the dimensional co-ordinates for it. This is how we get to Alkahmia, since there's no real link to it any more."

"But how can you go through the Dongai with them?" Rukia asked, still confused. "And how can we all go when there are only six?"

"Well, each disc can carry two people; so long as one has the paired control pad is with them, it will still work with two people on board. As for the Dongai, the Teleport Discs provide a sphere of energy around the users to prevent the Dongai encroaching on them, which means that this system requires no set path for that reason." Rukia nodded, amazed by this. Ed looked up, seeing the others appeared to be ready. "Looks like we can move out."

Away from the group, Kai was talking with Orihime, his Teleport Disc prepared and ready for use already. He took her hands delicately in his, a serious face on his features.

"You know I love you, right?" he asked. Orihime smiled and nodded. "Good, but that won't stop me from saying this; I love you, Orihime Friel." Orihime blushed and giggled at the sound of her name; it had been a long time since she had married Kai, but it still sounded odd to not be Orihime Inoue any longer. "I don't care what anyone says, I will never stop loving you for who you are."

"Kai," the girl whispered to her husband. "What's brought all this on?"

"I don't want to lose you," Kai replied. "That's why I have to ask you not to come to Alkahmia." Orihime's eyes widened at this, but Kai explained quickly. "It will be dangerous, 'Hime, and I can't guarantee that I can protect you in that situation; I don't want you to get hurt because I couldn't protect you."

"You don't have to protect me, Kai," Orihime said resolutely. "I am capable of protecting myself. I want to help in any way I can." Kai smiled at this, nodding approvingly; he had expected nothing less from the woman he loved.

"Alright," he said, holding her close and looking to the others from the Sanctuary. "Looks like we're ready to-"

Kai stopped as a familiar pressure pressed down on them. His eyes widened and turned to see a man in his late thirties stood there, adorned in a blue uniform, the brilliant hue of the trousers and overcoat vastly different to that of the white shirt, black boots and silver rank markings on the jacket. Around his waist hung a gun-slinger belt with a single holster on the right hip, which lay empty at his side, and a black pod of some sort on the left hip. The man himself was fairly tall and looked a little ragged, his brown hair messy and unkept, his face stubbly and in need of a shave. His cold grey eyes hardened as they spotted Kai, but an insane grin contorted his face.

"I knew I would find you," he said, raising his right hand, which held a rather large pistol; a spitting image of a Five Seven with an enlarged barrel, clip and muzzle, all of which were black except for a red grip. "I think you need to come with me, hooligan."

"Ken Smith," Kai growled. He subconsciously pushed Orihime behind him, his right hand tightening around Supernova's hilt. "How did you find us?"

"That fight you had? You've been letting your reiatsu slip out bit by bit since then." Kai snarled, but Ken seemed unfazed, grabbing the pod on his belt. "Now, this farce is over, Friel. Come with me, or I'll have to use this on your little girlfriend."

"You dare touch her, I'll rip off your arm!" Kai roared, his eyes flickered red for a moment as his rage built, but it quickly subsided. "I've got bigger fish to fry, Smith. Go play with the traffic." He turned and walked away, taking Orihime with him, but Ken laughed, stopping them.

"Very well, then!" Ken said, aiming his left hand at the pair and his thumb pressed a button on the pod in it's grip. A pulse of electricity leapt out of it, heading for Orihime, who had been following Kai. She gasped, unable to react in time, and flinched as she heard it.

A hollowfied shout of pain. She saw Kai, his mask partially on his face, stood in the path of the beam of energy. The group heard the shout and came running over behind her, but Kai spoke first as the beam stopped.

"Stay back!" he growled with a feral tone. "He's mine! Don't interfere," He turned to them, and Ed, Jon and Ella all noticeably flinched at the sight of Kai, his right iris red, the sclera black, but the left one, beneath the triple-horned mask on the top left quarter of his face, was marred behind a mass of red and black reiatsu which trailed out of the eye socket like flames. "Or I might have to kill you too!"

With that, he drew his zanpakuto, changing it to Frenzy Mode, appearing as a pair of pistols holstered on his sides and armour up his arms, and ran towards Ken, his movements animalistic. Ichigo watched, stunned by this development, watching them fight. He turned to Ed, who looked concerned.

"What the hell is going on?" he asked. "Why did he hollowfy so strangely?"

"That's not hollowfication, Ichigo," Ed replied. "That device is a Voltric Inducer, a sort of taser which can subdue most opponents."

"He doesn't seem to be subdued though," Uryu noted, watching the scene unfold as Kai fired a blast of dark energy at Ken, missing by inches.

"That's because of his hollow," Ed said plainly. "Don't interrupt me when I'm explaining. Anyway, that thing has one rule; never use it on a Vizard. It disrupts the balance of the hollow and causes what is known as 'Limit Release', but this refers to Madness Limiters." Ichigo's expression changed to one of knowing; he had experienced Kai's Madness Limits being fully withdrawn before; the destructive power he had then was terrifying to say the least. "Like this, the cause of his rage becomes his only concern, and any who get in the way are destroyed. He'll reseal his limiters himself if we leave him to it."

"I hope you're right," Rukia said calmly despite the situation. "Otherwise we may have to stop him ourselves."

In the battle, Kai roared in fury as he lashed out with his fist, aiming for Ken's face but missing by a few moments. He rounded on the man, who struck him in the face with the barrel of his pistol, but this only made him back away a step or two and angered him further. He lunged again, this time forcing his right leg around in a roundhouse kick. Ken blocked it, but missed the pistol in Kai's left hand charging a shot until it struck him in the chest. He backed away, his chest burnt and uniform twisted and torn. With both pistols drawn, Kai fired off a sporadic barrage at the human, landing a few hits and kicking up a smokescreen. Ken panted, reeling in the dust and smoke.

"Where are you hiding, you coward?" he barked.

"That's rich coming from a hypocrite," Kai's malice-laced voice said plainly, his obscured left eye visible in the smoke behind Ken. Before he had a chance to react, Kai's leg smashed into his ribcage, cracking it under the force and sending him staggering. "I expected more of you, fool."

Ken fired in Kai's direction, but it met nothing. Stunned, Ken felt a fist meet his jaw, spinning the world for him. Something gripped his right arm at the upper arm, then the sound of rending flesh, liquid pouring onto the ground and ripping cloth accompanied an intense pain as something struck his solar plexus hard, sending him reeling. He staggered out of the smoke, winded, looking at the place where his right arm had been moments before. Abruptly, Kai appeared to his left, out of his line of sight, the missing limb in his grip and swinging at Ken's head. The man was down before he could tell what had happened, a pool of his blood surrounding him from his wounded torso. Kai pressed his foot on the man's left cheek, forcing him to stay down, his right hand holding a pistol and aiming it on Ken's temple. He seemed to be adjusting something as Ken's eye rolled to meet the insane man's face.

"Well, it's been fun, jackass," he growled. "But time's up for you!"

A red light lit up the muzzle of Kai's pistol, charging a shot to take out Ken once and for all, but the shot never came. Instead, the pressure released from Ken's face and Kai seemed to start panting. His mask had dissipated, and his pistol had hit the floor as he backed away from Ken, his eyes wide with shock; he was in disbelief.

"Wha-" he struggled. "Wh- What happened?" A hand rested upon his shoulder as Ed came over to his friend. Kai shook a little. "How did-"

"Relax," Ed replied. "It was out of your control; there was nothing you could do."

"I..." Kai looked confused. "I did this?"

"I knew you were trouble," Ken gurgled, blood pooling in his throat. "You are... nothing but a vicious beast..."

"You had it coming," Ed growled hostilely. "You had been warned about using that Voltric Inducer on a Vizard and the damage it could do; this is your doing, not Kai's."

"It only proves..." Ken groaned. "That he is unstable." Kai clenched his fists and teeth, turning over his shoulder.

"Orihime!" he called out.

"Don't try it," Ken said. "I refuse to accept... your help, boy." He began to splutter, his time running out. "Know this; your lack... of control caused this. And mark my words... it will... happen again."

The man sighed and fell still, his life force escaping from him finally. Kai gritted his teeth and clenched his fists tighter than before as Orihime ran over. She gasped, her hands covering her mouth in shock, but the young woman could tell that her husband was also hit hard by this and placed a hand on his shoulder in an attempt to reassure him.

"There was nothing you could do, Kai," she said softly.

"Yeah," he mumbled, his eyes never meeting hers. He visibly relaxed as the tension reduced in him. "Come on. The more time we waste here, the stronger JX is going to get."

Ed and Orihime nodded as they returned to the group. Urahara and Tessai had appeared from the shop in the disturbance outside, watching with confusion as the trio rejoined the group.

"Kisuke," Ichigo said as the three of them came over. "Give that man a proper burial; I don't know what happened between Kai and him, but it is the right thing to do."

"I understand," the blonde shop keeper nodded. "It will be done when you all return."

"Thank you," Ed said, having heard the brief exchange. "Now, we should get going quickly, else we might be too late to stop them."

Everyone nodded their agreement and stepped up to the Teleport Discs. Each one could only hold two people, so they paired up; Kai and Orihime, Ed and Ichigo, Jon and Chad, Ella and Rukia, Alex and Uryu, and Jess and Renji. The six discs whirred as they began to rend the Dongai and dimensional fabric around them, generating a sphere of orange light around each as they transported across the dimensions to their first destination. As the light faded, Urahara raised his head and gazed into the blue sky.

"Good luck," he said to the air. "All of you."

* * *

><p><em><strong>Ashen Abyss, Somewhere Within the Dongai<strong>_

The twelve travellers stepped off of the Teleport Discs, which steamed from their travel. The plains around them were a dark charcoal mess of burnt plant life and scorched ground. Even the sky, which was flowing above them and dipping into streams onto the ground in the horizon, was a dark, ominous shade of indigo. Ichigo looked around, stunned at how dark and chaotic the place looked.

"Are you sure that this is the right place?" he asked. Kai rolled his eyes.

"Of course I'm sure," he replied. "We just have to find my contact."

"What's he look like?" Uryu asked.

"Hell if I know. This place isn't know for life; it's known for doing business which might be deemed 'unsavoury' in other dimensions."

"Like the Black Market in the World of the Living then," Jon grunted. "Figures."

"What is it you're after that's so 'unsavoury', as you called it?" Ichigo asked, but his answer was never given as a figure in a dark cloak appeared before them.

The figure stood about 5' 8", putting it level with some of the group and just below most others. It had a black cloak over it's head and marring the left side of its body. However, the right arm was exposed, revealing the smoky-purple flesh of the creature, for calling it a person would not have been correct. It wore a silver bracelet up half of its forearm, and a dark cloth substance covered the remained of the torso and the legs to the knees, where similar bracelets sat on the shins. Red eyes gaze out at the group then lowered the hood, revealing a lizard-like face with a pair of short protrusions atop its head and a deep red scar over the right eye. It looked at each member of the group briefly, then drew a long silver pistol, holding it upright. Ichigo's hand went to his zanpakuto's hilt, but Kai placed a hand on his wrist and forced it down. Ichigo turned to face his fellow Captain, who shook his head.

"He's only doing that for self defence," he explained plainly before stepping forward to the creature. "I take it you are Thrax, right?"

"Ah, so it is you, child of destruction," the creature, Thrax, purred softly. "The sword should have given it away I suppose."

"Who are you?" Ichigo asked. Thrax cocked his head, confused.

"Forgive me, master Friel," the creature said to Kai. "But you said nothing of these people when we negotiated. You do have the _items_ I requested, yes?"

"That depends if you have mine, Zempacki," Kai replied. "You wouldn't be trying to double-cross me now, would you?"

They stared at each other before Thrax chuckled.

"Of course not," the creature replied lightly. He turned to the confused group. "Forgive my impoliteness. I am Thrax, ex-Zempacki of Darkness and humble tradesman for people desiring items which are, how you say, 'frowned upon' in society."

"Kai, can I talk to you about this?" Ed asked firmly, unsure about the Zempacki.

"Not now, no." Kai's response used a tone which refused to be swayed as he turned back to Thrax. He reach behind his left side and pulled out a brown pouch which had been attached to his belt and threw it to Thrax, who caught it in his clawed hands. "As promised, three bars of Soul Steel, two pounds of Sekki Sekki Stone, and five dimantium binding rods."

Thrax observed the items and nodded, a grin on his scaly face.

"Ah, it makes me proud to do business with such a distinguished and trustworthy person," he flattered, but Kai ignored it. "Though you are certainly not one for small talk."

"Just get on with it," Kai replied, drawing Supernova and opening his Shihaksho. "You said you could give me the power I need to face JX, now show me!"

"Very well, child," Thrax bowed, pulling out a small metal case and opening it. "I hope that you are the one from the prophecy, else I will not be safe even here."

The ex-Zempacki pulled out a small red gemstone about three inches long, one wide and one deep, lifted Supernova so that the head of the dragon on the hilt faced upwards, and pressed the stone into the crest. A flurry of red sparks and a dragonesque cry of pain came from the zanpakuto as the stone melded with it, but these passed in a few moments. The Zempacki nodded and Kai lay down as the second stone, this one slightly larger than the first, was pressed to his sternum. A excruciating pain shot through him, and a red light filled his vision, then blackness settled in around him.

* * *

><p><em>Sorry for the wait, but I've been busy of late.<em>

_I don't know how popular this story is, but I will try to balance between this and my other stories and school once I go back to it (wow, maybe I should consider a career in juggling O_o )_

_I kid._

_Anyway, review and say what you thought; I appreciate any feedback from you guys and girls!_

_Bye for now!_


	5. Verge of War

_**Disclaimer: **I do not own Bleach, Tite Kubo does. However, note that anything not of the Manga/Anime (unless I point out otherwise) is of my own design, including my OCs Kai, Rertyan and the Sanctuary Team._

_**Warnings: **Contains slight romantic reference, swearing and violence throughout._

_**Brief: **Just over a year has passed since the initial incident which brought Kai to Karakura, and it seems his past just will not leave him alone. An old adversary's return forces the group into a new world, but something has changed. Can they work together to stop the ultimate evil from destroying their homes, or will darkness fall over the dimensions?_

_**Pairings: **KaiHime, Ichiruki_

* * *

><p><strong>Bleach; the Doomsday Tomes<strong>

**Chapter 5: Verge of War, Uncover the Strange World**

_The Zempacki nodded and Kai lay down as the second stone, this one slightly larger than the first, was pressed to his sternum. A excruciating pain shot through him, and a red light filled his vision, then blackness settled in around him._

The Neo-Vizard let out an agonized shout as the stone pressed against his chest, his eyes clenching shut until, for a brief moment as his torso raised, they shot wide open, revealing them to be entirely red and glowing. The small group seemed shocked at this development, but his eyes shut as quickly as they had opened and he fell back to the floor, his head lolling to the side as he slipped into unconsciousness. Orihime was knelt at his side in a heartbeat while Ed had his sword drawn and at Thrax's throat.

"Alright, you slimy bastard," he growled. "What did you do to him?"

"Exactly what he asked," the Zempacki replied plainly, showing no fear for his life. "Our deal was simple; he supplies me with three rare materials I cannot get, and I give him two Chaos Stones."

"What?" Uryu questioned. Orihime was trying to wake Kai up but to no avail. "What do you mean?"

"Allow me to explain," the creature sighed. He shook off Ed, who seemed bemused by this news, and picked up Supernova Dragon, the eyes of which were flickering red as if the zanpakuto were enraged by something. Thrax thrust the tip of the blade into the ground and pointed to the red stone in the crest. "This is a Chaos Stone; it is a powerful mineral engorged with reiryoku and imbued with energy. It is a spiritual amplifier which works by combining a section of it with a person or spiritual weapon."

"You mean a zanpakuto," Ichigo said, attempting to correct the being.

"That is one, yes," Thrax rolled his eyes. "But it is not the only one; your Quincy friend carries just another example. Anyway," he continued, "The problem with a Chaos Stone is that it has to integrate with the host, hence why he is now unconscious. It will remain in place until the power within it is expended, at which point it will shatter and leave the soul unharmed."

"So he will be fine?" Jon asked sceptically. Thrax nodded. "When will he awaken?"

"I do not know," he admitted. "It could be moments, or it could be hours. But he will awaken once he has accepted the stone."

"And if he doesn't?" Renji asked.

"Then it could get messy," Thrax replied bluntly. "For now, we must wait." He looked to Ichigo, noting the Haori. "Come, young man, I have something I must inform you of." Rukia moved with him, but the Zempacki raised his clawed hand. "In private."

Rukia was about to object, but her Captain placed his hand on her shoulder and shook his head. He bent down and kissed her gently upon the cheek.

"Don't worry," he told her. "I'll be fine. Keep watch over Kai for now." Rukia nodded begrudgingly, but allowed Ichigo to walk with the ex-Zempacki, watching with concern as they disappeared out of earshot.

* * *

><p>Kai groaned as his eyes clenched tight as he awoke, stirring on the cold stone floor. His eyes opened to reveal he was lying on the floor of his inner world, the cavernous realm dark and almost foreboding as per usual. He sat up, hissing as he felt the agony in his sternum, and hand raising to it instinctively. His fingers brushed against something crystalline embedded in his skin and bone, causing a frown on his face.<p>

"What the hell?" he asked before a familiar presence appeared in the form of his bleached self.

"So, you went through with it, huh, partner." Rertyan said plainly. Despite his phrasing being that of a question, his tone suggested it was a statement. Kai looked at him, bemused by the hollow's words, but soon it dawned on him what he meant.

"The Chaos Stone?" he asked. Rertyan nodded. "And Supernova?"

"I am here, Kai," the dragonesque spirit replied, appearing from the dark recesses of the cave. His chest held another Chaos Stone infused with it. "The stone is with me too."

"That's good," Kai nodded. "But why did you summon me here?"

"I did not," Supernova replied bluntly. "_It_ did." Kai cocked an eyebrow, causing Rertyan to roll his inverted eyes.

"Geez, you don't honestly believe that thing you're getting power from is a lump of rock, do you?" the hollow asked snidely before elaborating. "It is made up of a huge amount of reiryoku super-compressed into a crystal. The very essence of power it holds is so simplistic it can meld with anything with a spiritual presence, but it also means it has a dormant consciousness. That's what brought you here."

"Why?" Kai asked.

"_To see if you are worthy,_" a fourth voice replied, echoing around the cave. Kai looked around but saw nothing. "_Although I can fuse with anyone, I cannot allow my power to be used so flippantly._"

"Show yourself," Kai said firmly to the darkness. "You are in my inner world, at least give me the courtesy of revealing your true form."

"_Very well, child,_" the voice said as a red glow began to illuminate the area. "_I shall give you this courtesy as a gesture of good faith. Behold._" The figure stepped out of the light but it never faded, instead framing the figure as if it were an aura of power. The being was humanoid with red robes like that of a Soul Reaper surrounding its figure. The skin was fairly pale and the head without hair, but all of these things seemed normal compared to the eyes, which were pure crimson with no signs of pupils or sclera from iris. The robes etched themselves with black swirled markings of unknown design. The markings, Kai noted, did not stay still, but flowed freely as if they were alive. "_I am the spirit of the Chaos Stone. You may call me Spectre._"

"Alright then, Spectre," Kai replied, willing Supernova's sword form into his right hand. "How do you decide if I am worthy? A fight? A challenge of wit?"

"_How amusing,_" Spectre chuckled. "_You believe me to be of such barbarity that I would fight a person to decide their power, or have enough time to waste on a challenge of intellect? No; my methods are far simpler, boy. Tell me, why do you need my power?_"

"To defeat JX, to destroy him," Kai growled darkly. The being regarded him curiously with confusion in his eyes.

"_Why would you _need_ to do this?_" he asked. "_Surely you have no reason to destroy such a being. Besides,_" Spectre hesitated briefly. "_I have seen into you soul; you hold some doubt. How can you destroy something which causes you doubt?_"

"I have to," Kai replied. "If I don't, he'll use that damned armour to destroy everything in his path." Kai looked Spectre in the eyes, a resolute expression on his face. "I do not care if I am torn apart by your power; I do not care if my doubt causes my demise at _his_ hand; I do not care if I fall in that conflict and my soul is crushed eternally; I _have_ to try, or he'll destroy everything. And if that means I have to beat the power out of you, then you can rest assured that I will go to any length to do it."

Spectre was silent a moment, examining the young Captain before him before the light around him intensified. Kai flinched back, wondering if it was an aggressive reaction to his words.

"_Such noble intentions,_" Spectre replied as the beam of light shot from him to Kai's chest, "_are truly worthy of wielding my power. Know this, Kai Friel; once your duty is complete, I will claim my power back, and you will fall. Those are my terms. Keep it in mind before you choose to accept me._"

"I have already made my decision," Kai replied. "I accept your power, Spectre!"

The beam intensified and everything went black once again.

* * *

><p>Ichigo returned to the group, walking with an anxious expression on his face, the words Thrax had said to him before the creature left echoing in his mind. He did not know how trustworthy the ex-Zempacki was, but the news worried him, especially considering what he had seen Kai do only an hour ago. As he reached the group, Kai had finally begun to stir, sitting up and groaning while rubbing his head.<p>

"You okay?" Ichigo asked his fellow Captain. Kai looked over to the orange-haired man and nodded.

"Of course," he replied plainly. "What do you take me for?" He paused. "Where's Thrax?"

"He went back where he came from," Ichigo replied.

"What did he want?" Ed asked, but Ichigo shook his head.

"We don't have time for that," he responded quickly. "It's not important anyway. Let's just get to this Alkahmia place before it's too late." Ed looked like he wanted to argue, but decided against it. Kai nodded at Ichigo's words, standing and wrenching Supernova out of the ground.

"Then let's go," he said, sheathing his zanpakuto and readying his Teleport Disc. "Lock co-ordinates for the Drakon Citadel; we'll get a force mobilised for tomorrow and mount an assault on the Demon Stronghold then." The group nodded, agreeing with the offered plan.

The twelve of them got onto the plates and soon were on their way to the land of the Demons and the hiding place of Kai's dark alter ego, each of them apprehensive about the fights to come.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Alkahmia, Obsidian Chasm<strong>_

The laboratory under the immense stronghold buzzed with activity as various experiments went on. An inhuman shriek of pain sounded as one of the high security experimental devices was modified for the third time in the hour. Many devices started to whir as they were tested, some fizzling out quickly as they failed while others burnt up or ran normally. Behind a large bulkhead sat a large circular room, reminiscent of the Colosseum but with three devices hung on chains and piping in the centre. In the room stood a handful of Electric Zempacki, all of whom were tinkering with the devices and machines attached to them, a larger Electric Zempacki with crimson gauntlets over his forearms and clawed hands, who was the leader of the division, Thundrax, a humanoid man with a warped left arm, JX himself, and JX's right-hand Zempacki, the Chaos Zempacki Skywrath. Thundrax turned to JX, who was regarding the devices curiously.

"How did you find it this time?" Thundrax asked, wondering if his theory was correct.

"As expected, the Left Arm of Destruction was by far enough to overpower that child," JX replied plainly, his eyes never leaving the assorted devices. "And by binding with this part, I can sense the position of each of the other parts. I suppose it just shows that they all wish to unite once again." The right-most device shuddered as it reacted to something, an eye squinting a little as it emerged from the top of the sealed form of the next part of the Impendium Crucible began to awaken. "How long until all of the pieces are awakened and ready for alignment?"

"The limbs are easy enough; they will be ready in approximately nine hours," Thundrax offered. JX nodded, satisfied for a moment. "However, the centre piece is... a little more difficult. It is estimated that it could align faster once the influence of all four limbs is activated, but for now it is thought it will not activate for use for nearly twenty seven hours." JX clicked his tongue irritably. "I'm sorry, my Lord, but it must not be rushed, or the limbs may destabilise instead of the centre piece activating."

"I understand," JX nodded. "I will stay here and combine with each piece as it activates. Then I want the centre piece wired to the limbs to activate it more directly; with any amount of luck, we will have it activated in seventeen hours and aligned in eighteen. If it takes the full twenty seven, _he_ might get here for long enough to disrupt the alignment. We cannot let that happen."

"Yes, my Lord," Thundrax bowed. "I will personally work with the team on Project War Machine; hopefully it will allow you an extra hour against the child."

"Excellent," JX nodded, turning to Skywrath. "What of the attacks on Libras City?"

"Well," the Chaos Zempacki replied. "The first line of attack has pushed the dragons onto the defensive, and the aftershocks from Cronac's troops have damaged several areas of their defensive structures; we will be able to mount an offensive as soon as you are ready from the pit."

"Good," the man nodded. "I have my sacrifice for the control of the Crucible ready, so that will not be an issue."

"Ah, yes," Thundrax chipped in. "How did you settle the imbalance of power needed? It requires a near infinite power source, does it not?"

"Indeed," JX nodded. "But I will say nothing more on the subject; I have settled on such a thing already, and that is all that matters." A siren sounded around the stronghold, cutting the conversation short. "Seems they've arrived in Alkahmia at last. Skywrath, I want you to take control over the forces while I am here; I doubt he will be alone, and they will most likely bring a force with them to meet us and distract our troops. See to it that they do not get close enough to disrupt us."

"It shall be done, sir," Skywrath bowed and left the room, leading Thundrax out as he moved to the other labs. JX turned to the Electric Zempacki in the room, a few of whom were staring at him interestedly.

"Keep working," he barked. "I want these parts active before the child gets here!"

As if to set what he had said in stone, JX flared his reiatsu dangerously, instantly getting the Zempacki back on track from fear of being torn apart by their leader.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Libras City, Drakon Citadel<strong>_

Twelve silhouettes of electricity appeared at the centre of a metal plate resting in the centre of a ruined cathedral-like building. As they stepped out, a hiss of energy dissipation around them all as they group solidified, the half who had never been there before looked around in dismay.

"What happened here?" Ichigo asked, wondering how the destruction around them had occurred. Ed looked around quickly then sighed.

"Last time we were here," he explained, "while Kai was fighting JX and we were inside the Demon Stronghold, the Zempacki led an assault on Libras City and razed it to the ground; they've repaired a lot of it, but this was once a place of magnificent beauty and home to a wondrous race."

"And what race would that be?" Renji asked. A shadow loomed over them.

"Mine," the gruff voice belonging to the shadowy figure. The twelve turned and half backed away, staring up at the being. It stood at nine feet tall, towering over the tallest of the group by a long shot, and had two arms and legs. Unlike a human, however, it had a long tail, two large wings furled behind it, and an elongated neck. The head was much like that of the Zempacki, and the golden scales with orange underbelly, claws and spines did nothing to help this matter. The beast looked down at the six from the Sanctuary and seemed to smile at them. "Long time no see, children of Earth." Kai grinned.

"Finally," he announced, "a friendly, scaly face." The being chuckled. "Hello again, Inferno."

The creature, Inferno, nodded in return, noticing the others gathered behind those Inferno knew.

"Who are your friends?" Inferno asked, regarding the beings, all of whom had taken up a defensive stance each, whether that be holding the hilt of their zanpakuto or preparing to release their respective abilities or weapons. "And why do they seem so tense?"

"My bad," Kai replied. "I've never explained about our allies here." He turned to face the group and gestured to each in turn. "These are my friends from Karakura Town; the Quincy Uryu Ishida, the Soul Reapers Renji Abarai, Ichigo Kurosaki and Rukia Kuchiki, and the humans Yasutora Sado and Orihime Inoue." Inferno nodded to each in turn. "Guys, this is Inferno, one of the dragons the Sanctuary works with."

"Pleasure to meet you all," Inferno announced. The group hesitantly eased back from their respective weapons. "Now, let us go to the Council building. We have much to discuss, considering that you are all here. This can only mean one thing."

"I'm afraid that is the case," Ed replied. "They already have one piece activated and in use, and the last one is with them too."

"I see," Inferno nodded, leading the way. "This is a grave situation we have here; we must act quickly. Follow me."

The group followed the dragon, half of them still uncertain. Ichigo nudged Kai, getting his attention.

"Are you sure we can trust this guy?" he asked. Kai frowned.

"Keep your mouth shut," Kai replied. Ichigo glared.

"So you don't trust him ei-"

"No, I meant those comments," Kai amended. "Inferno hates it when you call her male." Ichigo blinked.

"Wait, so you mean..."

"Yep," Kai nodded. "So I'd keep that stuff quiet, if I were you. Jon made the same mistake when we first came here." Jon noticeably cringed at this.

"Don't remind me," he groaned. "I couldn't stand up straight for days after that." Ed snickered at this, but said nothing. The group stopped before a large citadel-like building which was floating a few hundred feet in the air. On either side of the building were two large towers, a helix of bright blue energy spinning lazily around them. The great structure was a marvel to those who had never seen it before and a reassuring sight to those who had. Inferno turned back to them all, her voice jovial.

"Welcome," she announced, "to the Council of Blazing Souls."

* * *

><p><em>Okay, a little short, perhaps, but I felt it was better to split it here.<em>

_Next time will be an insight into Alkahmia and how the situation is there._

_Anyway, please let me know what you thought of this chapter, and I'll update when I can._

_Bye for now!_


	6. Point of No Return

_**Disclaimer: **I do not own Bleach, Tite Kubo does. However, note that anything not of the Manga/Anime (unless I point out otherwise) is of my own design, including my OCs Kai, Rertyan and the Sanctuary Team._

_**Warnings: **Contains slight romantic reference, swearing and violence throughout._

_**Brief: **Just over a year has passed since the initial incident which brought Kai to Karakura, and it seems his past just will not leave him alone. An old adversary's return forces the group into a new world, but something has changed. Can they work together to stop the ultimate evil from destroying their homes, or will darkness fall over the dimensions?_

_**Pairings: **KaiHime, Ichiruki_

* * *

><p><strong>Bleach; the Doomsday Tomes<strong>

**Chapter 6: Point of No Return; Background Knowledge**

Inside the large building, Ichigo found his senses bombarded with a great light from the centre, the noisy chatter of dozens of keyboards being tapped into submission relentlessly by the many typists within, and the scent of burning metal, charred kindling and something reminiscent of coffee mixed with granite or another hard stone. The sheer magnitude of all these things together was mind-boggling on their own, but combined with the very fact that they were in another world altogether made it all the more confusing.

The Council of Blazing Souls, as Inferno had announced it, was a hybrid of a modern office block, a medieval castle melded with futuristic technological weapons lining the walls in show, and a mythical nature, the existence of which would be laughable if the group had not seen it with their own eyes. At the centre of the main building lay a crystalline pillar fluxing with blue-white light, the structure plunging into the ground, through to the next level, and spearing through the ceiling. Wires and tubes ran from the centre out to the various locations in the castle, spreading out like veins and arteries from a heart. Inferno turned to the orange-haired Captain and smiled a little.

"I bet it's strange, seeing something like this," she remarked. Ichigo smiled a little and nodded. "How about we give you the grand tour?"

"Not right now, Inferno," Kai interjected, cutting off any response from Ichigo. "I need to speak with the Drakon Elders right away. It's important." The dragoness looked concerned at the sharp response, but nodded.

"I understand," she replied. "They are waiting for you anyway; it would not be right to keep the Elders waiting. Follow me."

The group of humans followed the yellow-scaled dragoness as she walked into the depths of the fortress. A short way from the central pillar, they wheeled right, then left, then again. By the time they reached the stairwell leading down to the base of the structure, Ichigo had no idea which way they had come in the first place, a sensation which did not ease as they traversed the labyrinth of stone passages, each dimly lit by red flamed torches mounted every ten metres along the walls.

"How's anyone supposed to find anything in a place like this?" he asked. Rukia turned to the young Captain and smirked.

"Seireitei isn't that far from this," she pointed out. "Between the streets around the districts and the passages underground, its no more of a maze than this place." Ichigo snorted.

"You expect it from a city," he returned. "But this place is a building. It's ridiculous."

"It was actually a decision," Inferno interrupted, calling over her shoulder to the two Soul Reapers. "Based on the design of buildings akin to this one on Earth." Ichigo frowned.

"What kind of building is like this?" he asked. Ed chuckled and turned to the orange-haired Captain, ignoring the glare he was receiving from said young man.

"It's more from English ones," he replied. "You know, medieval castles smashed into office blocks. The Elders decided to keep to a hybrid of the two from designs given by the Sanctuary's own Elders. It's a little confusing, but it works for the purpose."

"It's still too confusing," Ichigo grumbled, folding his arms like a spoilt child which did not get its way, much to Rukia's amusement.

Soon after Ichigo's moaning, the group came to a halt outside a huge metal door which seemed to be entirely merged with the stone around it. From the step in the stone walls where the wall formed the door frame, two ultramarine-flamed torches sat at about eight feet off the ground, lighting the door from the centre of its height, and a metal box just below Inferno's shoulder height. She pressed the flashing red button on the metal box, raising the segmented iron screen to reveal a pulsing blue panel the size of a hand and extending a small arm housing a microphone.

"This is the Drakonian Chamber," Inferno informed them, placing her right hand onto the blue panel, the clawed extremity sinking into the panel as if it were plasma of some sort of goo. It began to pulse faster as it read her hand print. "This is where the Elders are for the most part." The panel turned red as Inferno finished explaining. "Access to Drakonian Chamber, designation thirty seven alpha, proxy delta tau." The panel flared yellow briefly, then lit up green. Inferno retracted her hand from the substance and stepped back, a loud whirring and the sound of gears graunching noisily filling the air.

"Welcome back, Elder Inferno," a mechanical voice ground out as bars of metal slid outwards and began rotating around. "Access to Drakonian Chamber approved."

The door shuddered as bolts drew back, barrels and tumblers shifted into position and chunks of metal swung, spun and retracted, all to unlock the hulking behemoth. After a few minutes, the metal panel stood still once more with a strip of blue light down the middle, swinging open in opposing directions to reveal the chamber beyond. The thirteen of them all filed into the room, spying the four occupants inside.

The chamber itself was fairly large and dull in style, the grey bricks prominent, though a carpet the colour of dried blood gave some style to the otherwise drab interior. The crystalline column from the ground level flowed down through the ceiling and into a console around the centre of the room. The four occupants turned to the group as they entered, leaving what they were doing instantly to see who it was who had arrived.

To the far left, standing beside a black obelisk pulsing with green energy, was a fairly short and bulky dragon, sporting a earthy-brown hide, fiery orange eyes and silver-coloured spines, claws and horns. Around the head was a black spined frill of sorts. A series of teeth and horns of varying hues around the creature's neck and bulky armour-like plates of red scales over the chest and shoulders made the dragon seem more intimidating, whereas the short, stumpy tail and disproportionately small wings gave the being an almost comical look. It was obvious that this dragon was a strong being, though clearly not that fast.

Beside the console, moving further around the room, stood another figure, this one dragonoid but with significant differences to the others. It was a fairly tall being with a simple graphite coloured hide, black claws and a white right eye. The strange things about the being was the lack of spines at all, the lengthy tail, and a series of metalwork which consumed areas of the creature entirely; the right arm and a section of the head had been replaced by mechanical parts completely, including the left eye, which glowed a light blue. Further than this, the right side of the chest had a plating which housed the socket for the prosthetic arm, and the wings had been modified to be more streamlined and also to have a few studs of sorts, which connected to something not present. The creature gave a scrutinising look at the group, then turned back to the console, the hand and arm of the prosthetic opening into several small spindly arms, each typing or pulling levers with great speed and accuracy.

The third occupant was stood beside the fourth, and was distinctly different from any of the others; far from being a dragon, the creature was just taller than a human, standing on three legs with a short tail behind it, and four powerful-looking arms, which each ended in five yellowed claws. The face was reminiscent of a pigs but with red eyes, dark tufty hair, pointed ears and yellowed tusks protruding from the mouth. The green skinned creature wore tattered brown cloth around its lower half and two black belts over its chest, each sporting an array of daggers and pouches, and a pair of long-barrelled pistols hung at its waist. It seemed to glare at the group behind Inferno as it looked over.

The final person, completing the quadruplet of dragons in the room, was the tallest of those present by quite a large margin. It had pitch black scales with dark scarlet horns, claws and spines. The underbelly held the same colour, as did parts of the grandiose frill, going with the dulled silver also there. The placid green eyes inspected the people gathered with intrigue, the mighty wings furled calmly behind and a long sword sheathed at its hip. Comparatively, this dragon was by far the most plain, but seemed to exert the greatest reiatsu of them all.

"So," the pig-faced creature grunted. "The rumours were true, I see."

"I guess that means you remember me then," Kai replied icily. The green creature growled audibly, but Kai ignored it, turning to those who were new to Alkahmia. "Let me introduce everyone; the bundle of joy here is Scourge Skofnung, Elder of the Goblin Mercenaries of the Eastern Plains." Scourge glared at Kai's remarks, but said nothing. "The short dragon in the corner is Dalkron, Elder of the Miner Congregation of the Elrean Pass." The dragon nodded its head to them. "The one working at the console is Airone, Elder of the Delta-Wings of Mount Phlexal." The dragon looked over, the blue eyes flashing pink briefly before returning to blue as it had been before. "And the last dragon is Igneous, Elder of the Drakon Empire." The last dragon nodded slightly and walked forwards as Kai finished. "The last Elder is Inferno, the Elder of the Technologists Guild of Libras City."

"It is a pleasure," Igneous said courteously, taking a knee to come down to near the group's height. "To see you again, old friend." A red claw gently moved Kai's black Shihakusho, revealing the red crystal embedded in his chest. "Although, the news of your battle on Earth was less than relieving, as you might understand."

"I appreciate the concern," Kai nodded. "But as you can see, it will take more than that to kill me." Igneous still looked concerned, but remained silent, prompting Kai to continue. "I need to ask for your help, Elders. As you are aware by now, JX has the completed Impendium Crucible, and is now waiting for each part to activate. Unless we act quickly and get to him before they do, the amount of damage which could be caused is immeasurable. We need your help to break through the perimeter of the Zempacki fortress and mask our advance; the rest we can deal with from inside."Igneous turned to the other Elders, silently questioning their decisions. With no responses against this action, Igneous turned back to Kai.

"We will help you in this conquest, Kai," he replied finally. "However, it will be approximately twelve hours before we can mobilise our forces." Kai nodded understandingly. "In total, we have eight hundred and seventy three fighters ready, with another three hundred and twelve returning from Libras City patrols and perimeter defences. Also, we have around a hundred aerial infantry on patrol to add to the hundred and sixteen here, and a further hundred and thirty nine subterranean warriors." Kai added the numbers in his head.

"So, we have a total of one thousand five hundred and forty warriors to take on the stronghold, plus the twelve of us who will be leading the advance, right?" he asked. Igneous nodded. Kai ran a hand through his hair with a sigh. "Against a force of about eight thousand, we have just over fifteen hundred to take them on..." He grinned a little. "Sounds like my kind of odds." Jon rolled his eyes.

"Just don't repeat what happened last time we fought there," he chipped in. Rukia frowned at his words.

"Why? What happened last time?" she asked. Kai seemed unwilling to say, but Ed was there to answer for him.

"It was along the lines of almost getting his butt handed to him," he said with a smirk. "And nearly levelling a building on his head."

"Not the only time that's happened," Ichigo noted, remembering how his fellow Captain had been thrown through several buildings in the fake, and also some of the real, Karakura Town in the Winter War. Kai glared at the two of them.

"It was the first time I tried using Dark Fate Cero," he growled. "Excuse me if I had no time to practise it because you rushed into a fight we didn't need to have!" His digit pointed accusingly at Ed, who shrugged at his friend's words. Kai sighed and turned back to Igneous. "Since we have so much time to spare, we might as well use that time to train and prepare ourselves." The dragon nodded.

"Of course," he replied. "You may all use the training facilities as you see fit. Also, we have four large quarters currently empty; you are welcome to use them if you need to rest."

Kai nodded and walked out of the room, taking that as his cue to leave. The others from the Sanctuary also left, bowing slightly as they did. Ichigo watched his friend walk away, noticing that his demeanour had shifted somewhat since his defeat above Karakura. He then turned to Inferno, who had walked forward to the remaining six.

"Since we have so much time, how about that tour before you join your friends?" she asked. No one seemed in a rush to train, and each was new to the place, making them uneasy. As if picking up on this, Inferno smiled a little. "It's alright, I don't bite." The slight joke eased the tension slightly, but it still hung heavy in the air.

"We would appreciate that," Ichigo finally said for the group. Inferno nodded and led them away. Renji leaned down to Rukia as they walked, speaking quietly.

"Is it me, or does Kai seem... different?" he asked. Rukia sighed slightly and nodded.

"I have noticed it too," she confirmed. "It's like he has become more distant."

"He hasn't become more anything," Ichigo cut in. The two Lieutenants looked at the Captain with intrigue as he explained. "He's become less... But I can't tell what exactly, or why."

As they traversed the corridors and the doors sealed behind them, none of the group was aware of Scourge talking with Igneous, Airone and Dalkron.

"Are you certain we can trust them?" the goblin asked cautiously. "I am not convinced."

"We have no reason to doubt them," Igneous replied. "You know what damage could be done if we allow the Zempacki to continue as they are."

"Still," Scourge growled. "I don't trust the boy, or his new-found allies." Dalkron rolled his eyes and scoffed.

"I knew ye goblins are meant to be paranoid li'l buggers," he grunted. Had any of the humans been present, they would have mistaken his thick accent for Scottish or a close approximation of it. "But I had no idea ye were _this_ bad."

"The boy has helped us in many occasions," Airone added in his light, almost computer-like voice. "It is right for us to return the favour."

"A favour we would not owe if he had not brought the Champion of Darkness to life," Scourge snapped. "You know what the Prophecy says about him; this is not a wise decision, Igneous."

"I have never asked you to do something without just reason," the tall dragon replied levelly. "This is no exception. Kai is attempting to make amends for his mistakes; we should allow him to, and help where we can." The others backed down at this. "I want you all to go to your troops, have them ready for our march on Lucifer Stronghold. If they are engaged in battle, have them pull out as soon as they can, and have all your troops assembled here. Do you understand?" The three nodded silently. "Excellent. Prepare yourselves, for tomorrow shall bring the day we will scar the Zempacki forces once and for all."

* * *

><p><em><strong>Ground Level<strong>_

"We have four main towers on the building," Inferno explained as they entered a room through a metal bulk head. "Each one holds a different attribute we fight for. This is the inside of the Knowledge Pillar." The group looked up and gazed in awe at the white sphere of energy suspended above them, a spinning set of metal rings revolving quickly around it. White light shot through a set of pipes connected to the apparatus. "This is the Drakon Master Mind, the source of our collective knowledge. It functions as a Hive Mind for our kind."

"It's beautiful," Orihime said, staring up still. Inferno smiled, but went on anyway.

"The other towers," she continued. "Are the Strength Pillar, housing the Master Muscle, the Aerial Pillar, which holds the Master Wing, and the Power Pillar, which contains the most important and powerful thing we have; the Master Flame." Uryu cocked his head as they started to file out of the room.

"Why would you contain all these precious things in one place?" he asked. "Doesn't that make it easier to attack them?"

"Yes, you might think so," Inferno nodded, leading them on. "But the Council of Blazing Souls exists deep within Dragon Territory; for the Zempacki to get this far, they would have to fight through countless forces and then penetrate the perimeter just to get close to them. The Master Artefacts used to exist in temples on the surface, scattered all over Alkahmia, but these were too isolated to defend easily, so we brought them here." Inferno glanced over her shoulder, noting that Ichigo looked as though he wanted to say something, but was unsure how to phrase it. "Speak your mind, Captain. You seem troubled."

"How did this all start?" he asked. "Dragons and Zempacki look practically the same, but they are different from one another; why?" Inferno paused, nodding at the questions.

"Come with me," she said, leading the six humans into a large room with a long but slender, conical crystal protruding from the middle of the ground. Inferno shifted a little as she pulled a lever, running the devices in the room. The crystal spun, gaining speed, until a beam of blue shot upwards, expanding into an image, like a hologram being projected into the room. "In the beginning, there were only dragons. We lived in harmony, caring for one another and protecting the Five Master Artefacts from any who stumbled across Alkahmia with hostility. That was a long time ago.

"Many years ago, the whole dimension trembled and warped as if it were suffering from an earthquake which even made the air shudder. A dimension known to us as Proximus Alpha," The image of a small purple mass appeared in the hologram, along with a larger, orange mass, "collided with Alkahmia. The force shook the dimensions until, regrettably, Proximus Alpha imploded." The purple mass burst into dust as it struck the orange.

"This," Inferno went on, "left something ingrained within Alkahmia; a rare object known as a dimensional core." A deep blue sphere pulsed at the centre of the orange mass. "These objects protect a dimension from others after it survives a collision. The limitless power of that core has been many the cause of a war, but I digress. The core also brought three other things with it; an artefact of immense power, possessing the strength to consume dimensions completely, known as the Impendium Crucible, eight beings with the power over the elements, and a small microbe, a mass of black matter which flowed with its own consciousness. This was the 'Demon Strain', as it was later named.

"The Demon Strain infected one of our best, a dragon called Magnus Sentiens; he became the first demon in existence, a creature of darkness under the name of Demon X." The image shifted to shown a tall, black creature with red eyes and a malevolent aura about it. "Demon X then infected other dragons to build his army. That is how the Demons came about."

"What about the Zempacki?" Renji asked.

"I'm getting there," Inferno chided. "The Elementals are the reason for the Zempacki; originally, we had captured them, but our holding facility was breached by the Demon Champion as a way of proving his worth shortly after his creation. Once they were released, they wanted revenge; to get that revenge, they imbued the Zempacki with their elements and joined forces with them." Eight figures appeared in the Hologram, each looking sprite-like and differing from one another in some ways.

"These are the Elementals," Inferno elaborated. "They have dominance over the eight elements here; earth, wind, fire, water, lightning, light, darkness, and chaos. Consequently, the Zempacki have access to these to power their abilities. They also have another advantage over us; they have access to a version of Zanpakuto, but we do not.

"The reason for this is the fifth Master Artefact, the Master Spirit, was contaminated by the Demon Strain, isolating it from us and bestowing its strengths to the Zempacki. As such, we cannot use a zanpakuto, which makes it a good thing that we have the likes of you and your Hybrid Zanpakuto." Rukia frowned at this.

"Wait," she interrupted. "We Soul Reapers don't use 'Hybrid Zanpakuto', we use regular zanpakuto." Inferno cocked her head.

"You are not the same as the others?" she asked, intrigued. "I suppose I should not be surprised; after all, for there to be a Hybrid Zanpakuto, there must be an original too." She fixed the three Soul Reaper with a serious gaze. "Would you do me the courtesy of explaining the technicalities of your Zanpakuto?" Renji and Ichigo exchanged blank looks.

"Um, what?" Renji asked. Rukia rolled her eyes and brought her hand to her forehead.

"Honestly," she grumbled. "You're both hopeless." She looked over to Inferno, ignoring Ichigo's indignant comments that he had not said it. "Our zanpakuto officially have three states, though some only manage to acquire two and even less only have two forms overall." She threw Ichigo a brief look before continuing. "A Soul Reaper's zanpakuto possesses an unreleased form, a worded release which we call Shikai, and a final release called Bankai. Each Zanpakuto has a unique name and release command for Shikai, but the name is only for Shikai. Bankai simply uses the release command 'Bankai' for all zanpakuto, but the name changes slightly. For example, Ichigo's zanpakuto, Zangetsu, becomes Tensa Zangetsu in Bankai." Inferno nodded.

"I see," she said, taking the information in well. "Are there any others?"

"The Arrancar," Ichigo remembered. "They had Zanpakuto as well. But they only had one release, right?"

"Sort of," Uryu replied. "If you remember, Ichigo, they had their normal release like a Soul Reaper's zanpakuto, though they called it a Resurreccion. Then a few also had a second release, their Segunda Etapa. I'm surprised you do not remember, considering what happened." Ichigo glared at the Quincy.

"Shut up," he growled back before turning back to Inferno. "Anyway, every time they released, they healed the worst of their wounds, most likely using their dormant Instant Regeneration abilities. Plus their zanpakuto seem to fuse with them when they release."

"Ah," Inferno nodded. "I see now why it is that your comrades wield hybridised zanpakuto. It seems they retain the nature of the Soul Reaper zanpakuto when they first release, but that is not the case when they go into Bankai. In all cases I have seen, the zanpakuto merges with their bodies, as if they are one in the same, and the reiatsu they release repairs any extensive damages on their being. Surely you have noticed this."

"Well," Ichigo rubbed the back of his head, looking away. "It's not like Kai uses his Bankai that much, and besides, the others haven't really shown us their Bankai; not on purpose, at least." inferno nodded understandingly. Ichigo looked up again. "What about the Zempacki releases? Are they like Kai's and the others?"

"Similar," Inferno replied. She brought up another simulation, this one of a sword. "As you have seen when you fought them, the Zempacki have a standard unreleased sword. Each type of zanpakuto differs according to element, but those of the same element have identical swords. Their releases are actually the Zempacki lifting pre-set limiters on their power, hence why they refer to them as 'locks'. The Primera Lock, or primary release, wreathes the sword in their element, meaning all Zempacki have this." The simulation of the sword changed, placing the weapon in the hand of a Zempacki. Chains of red energy circled the Zempacki before then dissipating in a small burst, energy wreathing the sword in the Zempacki's grip.

"After this stage," Inferno continued, "is the Segunda Lock, which requires a heightened reiatsu compared to standard. This gives the zanpakuto a unique form with varying abilities depending on what its element is and how its wielder prefers to fight." As expected, the animation shifted, a black set of chains appearing this time and dispersing. The sword stopped being wreathed in energy, instead absorbing it and changing into a spear.

"The final stage is only for the most elite warriors," Inferno said, loading up the next animation. "This release is known as Elemental Imbuing as it takes the Elemental of the Zempacki in question and merges it with the zanpakuto and the Zempacki itself, resulting in a Calamity Golem, as we have named them. These are rare, as only the highest ranked Zempacki can use it, plus it requires the knowledge of the zanpakutos name." The image of an Elemental appeared behind the Zempacki before melding with it, leaving a burning, deformed creature much larger than the original parts combined. The holograms then faded. "Now then, let me take you all to the training rooms; I'm sure your friends are waiting for you."

* * *

><p><em>I know this is probably a boring chapter, but some of the background information is important for later on.<em>

_Anyway, I'm back at school finally, so I might slow down a bit from now on, but I'll still continue writing regardless._

_Anyway, let me know what you think, and I'll post again as soon as I can._


	7. Wartime Training

_**Disclaimer: **I do not own Bleach, Tite Kubo does. However, note that anything not of the Manga/Anime (unless I point out otherwise) is of my own design, including my OCs Kai, Rertyan and the Sanctuary Team._

_**Warnings: **Contains slight romantic reference, swearing and violence throughout._

_**Brief: **Just over a year has passed since the initial incident which brought Kai to Karakura, and it seems his past just will not leave him alone. An old adversary's return forces the group into a new world, but something has changed. Can they work together to stop the ultimate evil from destroying their homes, or will darkness fall over the dimensions?_

_**Pairings: **KaiHime, Ichiruki_

* * *

><p><strong>Bleach; the Doomsday Tomes<strong>

**Chapter 7: Wartime Training; Preparing for Destruction**

In the training grounds within the mystical compound, the sounds of loud explosions and crashing steel filled the air. Deep within, flames danced around the armoured gauntlet-wielding young man, who panted a little from the battle, patches of ice clinging to his exposed Shihakusho as his opponents prepared themselves for another bout. His gaze turned to his ally, her twin swords glinting as she tightened her grip on them before turning to him and smiling reassuringly. He smiled back before turning to look over his shoulder, spotting the sixth of their group, who was perched atop a rock with his sword over his crossed legs, his eyes closed as he communicated with the spirits within his being. The man sighed and turned back to his opponents.

"Well, ready for round two, guys?" Ed asked. "I'm rusting over waiting for you to catch your breath!"

"Don't flatter yourself, idiot," Jon growled, his lupine form cracking his neck as he readied himself to fight once more. "I haven't even broken a sweat; you're just not that good a match for me."

"Oh, is that so?" Ed smirked, flexing his right hand, a flicker of flame-like reiatsu lashing at the air around it as the flame-jet beneath his gauntlet heated up again. "Well, in that case, I'll just have to char-grill you a bit better this time."

"Would you two shut up?" Alex growled, his mask covering the top left corner of his face. "I'm running out of time here."

"Yeah yeah, we're getting there," Ed rolled his eyes. Fire sputtered out of the flame stacks on his back and his arms. Ed grinned at this. "All fired up; let's get this show on the road."

As the five of them commenced in their battle once more, the sixth dwelled within his own world, the three beings within talking about what was to come.

"This will be risky, Kai," the dragon spirit noted. "Fusing both myself and Rertyan to yourself was difficult enough, but to merge with another entity could be hazardous to your spiritual body. It could-"

"I know already," Kai replied sharply. "I am aware of what could happen if it goes wrong, but if I don't try this, it will be worthless to even attempt to fight _him_." Kai's bleached alternate folded his arms and sighed.

"Even if you used my Cero at point blank," he noted. "Or infused it with Chaos Wave, it wouldn't be enough in our normal maximum output. I hate to say it, but I don't think we had any other choice in the matter, Supernova. Our only bet was to take in another power to improve our strength."

"Even so, we should have at least considered the alternatives," Supernova grumbled. Kai sighed.

"Too late for that," he replied. "What's done is done, and nothing we can do now will reverse it. Let's just try to harness its power before we head out; we don't have long left."

"Alright," Rertyan stretched a little. "I'll try to limit the Chaos Stone to minimum once you leave; don't want anyone freaking out until you're in a battle, huh, partner?"

Kai grinned, his body lighting up with red energy.

"Sounds good," he said as his body dispersed into the air, realigning his consciousness with his body.

Kai stood up on the rock as his friends sparred with one another. He grinned, extending his arm with Supernova in hand.

"It's been a while since I've done this," he murmured, holding his right wrist and channelling his reiatsu into the blade, red energy crackling around the sword as he raised it above his head. "Bankai!"

The blast was larger than he had expected, that was for sure; it had enough force and magnitude to stop the battle between Kai's allies, taking them by surprised as it tore into the sky. When it subsided, they stared at the figure suspended fifteen metres in the air, the form unfolding itself as it awoke.

Kai's Bankai had changed somewhat since they last saw it, most likely from his new power disfiguring it. It still had the skeletal wings and tail from before, and attached to the right hand was still a spiny-crested dragon head, a fairly long blade of bones protruding from the mouth, but that was where things began to change. The wings were larger and more demonic than before, the amount of shadow oozing off of them was dense and heavy as it rolled off of Kai's shoulders, and attached to the left hand and feet were large, claw-tipped bones. The right sleeve of his Shihakusho was consumed by bone and dragon scales, ending just below the shoulder. On his chest lay another dragons head, the central point of the crest housing the Chaos Stone in Kai's chest. As he moved to inspect the form, the second stone became visible in the crest of the head on his hand.

"Is that... really him?" Alex asked, an ominous feeling washing over him as his mask finally dispersed into the air, his power exhausted. Ed smiled a little, gazing at Kai as he drifted down gently, touching down in a ring of dust displaced by his approach.

"Looks like you're ready to try it out," he noted. "How do you want to do this?"

"I want to push this form to its peak and drive it further," Kai replied simply. He turned his head to Alex and Jess. "Go train with each other; this could be dangerous without Bankai." They simply nodded and headed away. Kai turned to Ella, who seemed a little timid with his form. "Go help them; your Bankai is not something we should train with, after all." Agreeing, she followed the two, leaving Ed and Jon standing there with Kai. "We'll fight, you two against me; that's the best way to test this form." Ed grinned.

"Alright, but don't use that ability of yours with me," he replied. "That would hardly be fair, now would it?"

With a nod, Kai raised his blade to Ed and Jon, his reiatsu shooting up in magnitude and density. They cringed, reacting to the shift in air pressure, and readied themselves. Kai took in a breath and smiled.

"Standard combat rules apply," he announced, taking his stance. "Supernova Dragon, Kai Friel; ready."

"Infernal God's Fist, Edward Sun; ready," Ed declared.

"Silver-Spined Moon Wolf, Jonathan Grim; ready," Jon snarled. Silence fell over the battle field before he moved first. "Moonlight Fangs! Fly!"

A series of eight, razor sharp silver projectiles shot from his back, swarming around Kai and zipping this way and that, attempting to slow his advance and limit his movement. With a sharp exhale, Kai swung his blade, sending a shockwave strong enough to send the fangs careening away from him. Following the move, Kai started swiftly for Jon, blade scraping the ground and kicking up sparks and dust into his wake. Ed raised his right arm and clenched his fist.

"Infernal cannon," he said as the right flame stack rotated over his shoulder to aim at Kai. When he was happy with the calibration, he swung his arm out. "Fire volley!"

A sphere of condensed light and flame built at the tip of the first stack, launching as it built to its maximum size. No sooner had it left the muzzle of the stack did a second one begin charging on the shorter right stack. The fireballs shot towards Kai, forcing him to alter his course or be charred by the power of the flames. As they impacted the ground, small craters filled with fire emerged in their wake, causing destruction all across the field of battle. A smokescreen blurred the fighters from one another, leaving Jon and Ed standing at the ready as the infernal cannon stopped to cool down. The lupine warrior turned to look at his armoured comrade.

"Think we got him?" he asked as the smoke swirled, giving way to an arc of red energy which surged forth towards the combatants, splitting them up as the large wave scorched through the air and slammed into the wall behind them, the reiryoku-absorbing material leaving the wall intact without so much as a burn visible. "Guess not!"

As quick as before, Kai began the attack, swinging in towards Jon's form, but a set of long silver claws intercepted the blade. Instantly, the sword pulsed with red and black energy, the bones shooting outwards into whip form and wrapping around Jon's arm and binding it to his body. Used to this move, Jon tried to break free, only to find the Chaos Stone had reinforced the reiryoku in the whip and made it strong enough to withstand the lupine's struggles.

"Damn," Jon growled, swiping with his free arm but finding nothing. "You're tougher than I thought." Kai smirked, releasing Jon and kicking him away.

"Predictable," he said, swinging the whip out so that it struck Ed in the chest as he charged in. He moved to Ed's side, retracting the whip into its fist form and striking him in the chest with it. "It'll take more than that to stop me." The armoured fighter grunted and ground backwards over the rough ground, coming to an eventual halt several feet away, where he fell to his knee. Kai looked from Jon to Ed, each looking more worn out than they had from the much longer bout with the others, and sighed, rolling his head on his neck. "This isn't enough; it'll take more than this to push my abilities."

"Then that just proves how good you are like this," Ed replied, standing again. "You've never evaded that much of a barrage, not with that speed. And that Chaos Wave... I've never seen anything like it before; it even outweighed that you used to use when hollowfied."

"It's still not enough," Kai growled. "I need to know my limits and push passed them. You know I can't take _him_ on without knowing how far I can push myself before it all breaks." Ed grimaced and sighed. "Again. Harder this time."

* * *

><p><em><strong>Obsidian Chasm, Demon Stronghold<strong>_

The two tall figures walked down the corridor towards the briefing room, their footsteps echoing off of the white marble walls as they approached the large red doors. The darker of the two growled to himself, his black and grey cloak flowing behind him as he walked.

"I don't believe this!" he grumbled to his comrade. "First he has the nerve to claim dominance over the Zempacki forces, then he drags us around like a bunch of lap dogs, now this?! That punk has gone too far!"

"Keep your voice down, Damcras," his grey-green ally, Gresk, replied. "He may be in the laboratory, but Lord JX will not take kindly to your words if he finds out." Damcras scoffed angrily.

"That bastard couldn't scare me if he took on the most terrifying form in all the known universes," he replied. "Besides, he is completely incapacitated while that... that _thing _is developing. That's why his only real lap dog is in charge; I say we show him that we don't need him anymore." Gresk's eyes widened.

"You can't be serious," he replied. "You know the legends of that armour, Damcras; there is no way we could overthrow him now, not now that it has started taking effect. It's too late."

"Don't give me that crap, Gresk," Damcras replied harshly. "We could crush him any time so long as it is still waking up; saying it's too late now is cowardly bullshit."

Gresk sighed, but said nothing in response as they entered the room at the end of the hall, taking their positions around the main table with five of the other six Zempacki leaders, all awaiting the stand-in for their leader. Damcras looked around and grunted.

"Hey, where's Thundrax?" he asked indignantly. Calamatis rolled his crimson eyes.

"He has been drafted into working on his 'secret weapon' with the tech. division," the elder replied gruffly. "Got more to worry about than your mind could withstand." Dark shadows whipped around Damcras' maw as he growled.

"Mind your words, fledgling," he warned. "Or they will be your last."

"This is not the time to fight amongst ourselves," Celation chided softly, her calm, gentle voice attempting to de-escalate the situation before someone acted brashly.

"Indeed it is not," came a voice as the doors parted once more, allowing the final figure inside. Skywrath walked slowly as he made his way to the head of the table. "If anything, this is the time we must work together most integrally. After all, with the current situation, we will be having a full scale war on our hands. This will be a very interesting few hours for us all."

"What are our orders?" Torpine asked. A red hologram of the stronghold appeared and rotated at the centre of the table.

"We will recall all our troops from the previous occupations and conflicts," Skywrath replied. "It is predicted that the dragons will do the same. I want to position at least sixty percent of the forces at the main gate, including all Wind-type Zempacki and seventy five percent of the Earth-types. The remaining troops will be within the compound." Gresk frowned a little.

"Isn't that a bit extreme?" the Wind Zempacki asked cautiously. "The ones we have to worry about will almost certainly break through the gate and into the compound at the first chance; with sixty percent of the troops preoccupied elsewhere, they will have a much easier time to get deep inside the compound."

"You are forgetting that the Thunder Zempacki are not standard warriors," Torpine scolded. Her eyes did not meet Gresk as she spoke. "They will also be inside to defend the lower levels. Plus, we have their new 'toys' to our advantage too." She looked over to the head of the table. "I take it that they plan to use Project War Machine, correct?"

"Indeed," Skywrath nodded. "It is in its final stages. It will not be long now." Skywrath looked at the wall, the clock ticking on it silently. JX had been in the chamber for almost five hours. "Lord JX will be ready for battle in no more than twenty two hours, so bear that in mind when you are fighting. Also, it is imperative that we keep the child away for that time." Infernus cleared his throat.

"Forgive my interruption," he announced. "But there are six who we are not taking into account; the child's friends from Earth. What do we know of them?"

"There is not much passed their names and some extent of ability," Skywrath replied. A blue hologram shone, showing the Zempacki there the data of each person. "They are Yasutora Sado, a human with a powerful melee and defensive capability, Uryu Ishida, a being who specialises in long-ranged combat and bows to fight, Renji Abarai and Rukia Kuchiki, two Lieutenant-rank Soul Reapers, Orihime Friel, a healer and the child's beloved."

"That's five," Damcras growled. "You said there were six."

"I'm getting to it, you fool," Skywrath replied icily. Damcras bit back a response as the five screens of data vanished in exchange for one larger one. "The last is the most powerful of them all; Ichigo Kurosaki. Not a great deal is known about his current strength, but he is a competent and strategic fighter. It seems he wields a melee-type zanpakuto with Bankai, and a hollow mask as his back up. Also, his power appears to be similar to that of Kai Friel, his potential may be even greater." A whistle came from Calamitas at this.

"Impressive," he mused. "This young man could be a real pain for us at this rate."

"I will deal with him," Skywrath replied. "I have crossed blades once before with him, I am certain I have learnt his style and abilities." The Zempacki ignored Damcras' groan at this news. "That is all. Dismissed."

The leaders parted to speak with their respective troops. Damcras and Gresk held back, leaving last.

"You see?" the Dark-type grunted. "Now is the perfect time. What do you say? Are you with me?" Gresk sighed and pushed Damcras' hand from his shoulder.

"We are about to go to war," the Wind-type replied tiredly. "Now is not a good time for a coup d'etat, and you know it too." He walked away from his ally, brushing him off. "Prepare your troops, Damcras. This will be a great battle." Damcras snorted and turned away, storming away.

"Yes it will," he replied quietly. "But not for the reason you believe."

* * *

><p><em><strong>Council Training Area<strong>_

The group walked through the door into a plain, rather small room. The orange-haired Captain looked around with confusion.

"I thought we were going to the training room?" he asked the dragoness as she walked inside, heading for a control panel hidden within the far wall.

"We are," she replied. "We do not have the space for enough training rooms for everyone, so we have implemented a sort of barrier around them all; we call it phase cloak."

"Tell me," Uryu spoke up, pushing his glasses up onto the bridge of his nose. "How does this system work?"

"Compressed time and space are released in a field around the area we wish to use," Inferno replied. "Then the field is recollected into a storage unit to be released when needed. Because the time and space is recorded from a previous state, it means that those inside cannot be detected despite fighting in an open area. It's a fairly advanced technology, but vital to our troops." She typed something into the panel, causing a beep from the controls. In an instant, the wall to her left side slid aside, revealing a pane of white light. "This way, please."

The group stepped through one by one, finding themselves in a barren wasteland, a sun-cracked and dreary boulder field coated in light dust. In the distance, they noticed sparks of blue light and flashes of ice accompanying the sound of a familiar weapon discharging and clashing swords. Inferno walked out and smiled slightly.

"I see they are getting into their sparring as readily as they always did," she noted aloud. Suddenly, a dark figure shot into the air, rising rapidly but gradually slowing, a red energy building about it. "There they are. Let's-"

The figure swung its right arm in an arc, the huge energy arc rushing downwards and colliding with a great blue-white fireball. The resulting explosion of reiryoku and light was massive, bringing Orihime to her knee and making many of the others cringe as if they had born the brunt of the attack. Flames rained down around the winged figure, making him look all the darker. Orihime watched with wide eyes as he began to drift down once more.

"Is that... Could that really be Kai?" she asked, more aiming it at herself than anyone else. "What has he become?"

"What indeed," Uryu agreed quietly, watching the figure with narrow eyes. "What have you done to yourself, Friel?"

* * *

><p><em>Sorry this took so long, I've been side-tracked by school and some other stuff. As you may have gathered, I have the attention span of a goldfish, which really did not help here.<em>

_Anyway, you know the drill, let me know what you think and where I can improve._

_Thanks for reading so far; I'm aware this is not my most popular arc or fic, but I will see it through as it is the linchpin for a better arc._

_Until next time, everyone!_


	8. Eye of the Storm

_**Disclaimer: **I do not own Bleach, Tite Kubo does. However, note that anything not of the Manga/Anime (unless I point out otherwise) is of my own design, including my OCs Kai, Rertyan and the Sanctuary Team._

_**Warnings: **Contains slight romantic reference, swearing and violence throughout._

_**Brief: **Just over a year has passed since the initial incident which brought Kai to Karakura, and it seems his past just will not leave him alone. An old adversary's return forces the group into a new world, but something has changed. Can they work together to stop the ultimate evil from destroying their homes, or will darkness fall over the dimensions?_

_**Pairings: **KaiHime, Ichiruki_

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN: **Damn, it's been a long time since I last updated. I'm so sorry for the delay, I've had a lot to deal with, and lately I've had writer's block bitch-slapping me every few hours, as well as coursework, exams and now driving lessons (which is fun and useful, but takes my time away)... ugh, life juggling sucks._

_Anyway, I'm sorry for the delays, but I will update whenever I can; this year will be hectic in places though!_

* * *

><p><strong>Bleach; the Doomsday Tomes<strong>

**Chapter 8: The Eye of the Storm**

As the group of newcomers made their way towards the sparring between Kai, Ed and Jon, the extent of the damage caused by the fiery explosion made itself clear; the fireball had left small fires burning on the terrain in the aftermath of the explosion, littering the rocks with flame and char-marks. The core of Ed's chest emitted a vast amount of steam and smoke, his left gauntlet shattered and the right flame stack snapped. The young man looked tired as he panted, his face charred and dirty with sweat and grime. As the group arrived, his Bankai timed out, regressing into its sealed sword form, the man turning to the group.

"What kept you?" he asked breathlessly. "You missed all the fun."

"Fun?" Uryu asked. "You call this fun?"

"Alright, maybe we went a bit over the top, so what?" Ed replied.

"Where are the others?" Rukia asked. Ed looked around and rubbed his neck.

"Hell if I know," he replied. "Ella, Alex and Jess were sparring somewhere else in here. Last I checked, Jon was over there," The young man pointed with a thumb behind him. "but I can't see him any more."

"And Kai?" Orihime asked.

"Above you," came said man's voice. Their eyes drifted to Kai, still in his Bankai, with a figure slung over his left shoulder. He started to descend as he spoke again. "Jon's alright, just tired from the fight." His feet touched the ground and the skeletal tail swished once behind him. "Guess all that did is show your limits, not mine." Ed smirked.

"Yeah, maybe," he said. "Or maybe I just went easy on you." Kai snorted.

"I've seen you going easy; that was not it," he remarked.

"Enough," Inferno cut them off. "You three should go to the infirmary and rest." Kai gave Inferno a nod as his zanpakuto sealed.

"I'll go with these two," he said. "But I don't need any treatment myself; this thing's more powerful than that." The dragoness seemed fine with this. As Ella, Jess and Alex came over to the rest of the group, Ed and Kai left, Jon still unconscious over Kai's shoulder. Orihime hesitated before jogging up to them. Kai looked over to her and smiled a little. "You ok?" he asked.

"Y-yes," she nodded, not looking him in the eyes. His smile faltered.

"Are you sure?" he asked. "You don't seem to be." He gently put his right arm around her shoulders, but felt her flinch. He hesitated. "Is it me?" he asked.

"No, b-but, um..." Orihime paused, unsure how to go on. Ed sighed.

"Looks like you two want to have a private conversation," he noted. "I'll take Jon to the infirmary myself."

Before anyone could say another word, the fiery man had taken his friend onto his own shoulder and disappeared down the corridor. Kai turned his gaze to Orihime.

"Let's go somewhere quieter," he said, leading the way up a flight of stairs.

Above the strange world, night had fallen, the inky purple-black haze dotted with the flares of red and blue of stars and the twin chalk-yellow of the dual moons. Beneath them, atop the rooftop balcony of the east wing, Kai and Orihime sat, gazing into the sky.

"It's beautiful here," Orihime said in a sedate tone.

"Yeah," Kai agreed. "If it wasn't for the Zempacki, maybe it'd always be like this." His eyes fell on her. "What's wrong, 'Hime? I can't shake the feeling that you're afraid of something, and you that you won't look me in the eye." Orihime shifted hesitantly. "Is it because of what you saw in the training room?"

"I..." Orihime paused. "I have seen Ichigo go out of control, back in Hueco Mundo, and then I saw that... that thing you became before we came here, and now with this..." She trailed off, a tear trickling down her cheek as she turned to Kai. "I'm scared, Kai. I'm scared of what you're becoming." Kai stayed silent a while, assessing her words, then nodded.

"I know," he said, looking over to the horizon. "You're afraid of what I could do if I lose my grip; I'm fighting on the edge of a sheer cliff, and if I slip, I will fall, there's no doubt about that." Orihime nodded sadly. "But," Kai added. "You forget that when I fall, I will always dust myself off and get back up again. I won't let myself become the very monster I am fighting against."

"Sometimes," the woman looked down. "You have to become a monster to defeat a monster. What happens then? When you have beaten this monster, what will happen to you?" Kai blinked.

"I..." he hesitated, uncertain. "I guess, I don't really know."

Silence, then the shaky sobs of the auburn haired woman as she clung to her husband. Kai gently hugged her back, rubbing her back and running a hand through her hair delicately.

"I don't want to lose you," she whimpered. "I couldn't go on without you." She sniffed. "You must think I'm terrible and selfish."

"Don't say that," he whispered softly in her ear. "I'll always be here. You feel this here?" He untangled his hand from her hair and gripped her hand in his. "I'm never letting you go. You feel this?" This time he held her by the shoulders. "I'll never let you fall. And you see this here?" He tapped the ring on his hand. "This means I'll be with you forever. You'll never lose me, Orihime; no matter where we are, I'll always be with you."

"Kai..." Orihime whispered, before kissing him deeply on the lips. He kissed back with the same intensity, the warmth of each other's bodies filling their senses, their scents and tastes aiding the sensation as they continued.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Later<strong>_

Ichigo looked up at the ceiling, thinking of the battle to come; from what he already knew, braving the Zempacki Stronghold would be trying to say the least. The news of how many warriors the dragons had, and how many the Zempacki possessed in comparison, worried him, though not as much as the sight of Kai's Bankai in its distorted form. It was true he was trying to stop something more powerful than anything they had gone up against before, but the Captain could not help but wonder if it was entirely necessary. He rolled onto his side, gazing over to Rukia's sleeping form.

_Will we both be alright? _Ichigo wondered, staring at his good friend and the one he loved. _Can we really pull this off without either of us being hurt or worse?And even if we can, what will happen if we defeat them?_

"Ichigo," Rukia's voice brought him out of his thoughts. "If you don't stop staring at me, I'll have to hit you again." He sighed, rolling back over.

"Sorry," he said. A moment passed, then Rukia shuffled in next to him. They rolled to face one another.

"What's wrong?" she asked him. "You don't seem to be yourself."

"I'm a little distracted," Ichigo replied, laying a hand softly on her cheek. "I guess this place, everything we are going to go through, it's just getting me rattled." Rukia moved closer, resting a delicate hand on his cheek.

"We'll be alright," she said softly and reassuringly. "We've all been through a lot; this is no different to the Winter War." Ichigo smiled.

"I know," he nodded. "The only difference is the fact it's not Aizen but a duplicate of Kai. And also that both he and Kai are using something to enhance themselves beyond what is natural." His smile faltered. "But that's what has me worried. It's like he's changed since we got here."

"I know what you mean," Rukia nodded. "I have noticed it as well. It's like he's become warped by that power." Rukia paused, then gripped onto Ichigo, holding him close. "I'm scared, Ichigo," she admitted. "I don't want to lose anyone in this battle." Ichigo felt for her, holding her close to him and laying a gentle kiss on her head; it was a rarity for Rukia to let down her shields like she was now.

"It's going to be alright," he said, practically echoing her words moments before. "We'll be ok."

They soon fell asleep in one another's arms.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Later<strong>_

"You guys ready?" Jess asked as Ed and Jon finally joined them.

"Yeah, still sore as hell though," Jon complained. "Are we late?"

"Just a bit," Alex replied, turning back to the gathering of troops in the area before them. Kai and Ichigo stood with the Elders on a raised area before the gathering. "But it looks like we're about ready now."

Sure enough, Igneous took to the stand as Scourge moved away.

"Very well," he announced. "As you are all aware, the Zempacki are in control of the Impendim Crucible, and are no doubt activating it as we speak. We have lost much time gathering all of our troops, so we cannot afford to further delays, nor can we afford to hold back any force. This will be our last fight against the Zempacki. Either we go down, or they will." He looked around the group once more. "All troops, to arms! Begin the advance on the Zempacki Stronghold!"

With a cheer, the troops began to head out, moving towards the dark area of Alkahmia.

* * *

><p><em>Sorry for the delay, been having trouble getting ideas down of late, plus exams are a killer, and I've had three this year already :_

_Well, feel like this story is going ok, but truthfully it's not getting much interest, nor is it getting many reviews. So, I want to know if you guys want me to continue with it._

_As it stands, I have ideas, but if there's no interest in it, it's got no place being updated, especially since I've put another one on hiatus to allow myself more time to focus on it._

_So, let me know whether to go on or not, I won't take offence if you say you don't want to go on. Otherwise, I will continue on with this normally._

_Bye for now._


	9. Vicious Fight 1

_**Disclaimer: **I do not own Bleach, Tite Kubo does. However, note that anything not of the Manga/Anime (unless I point out otherwise) is of my own design, including my OCs Kai, Rertyan and the Sanctuary Team._

_**Warnings: **Contains slight romantic reference, swearing and violence throughout._

_**Brief: **Just over a year has passed since the initial incident which brought Kai to Karakura, and it seems his past just will not leave him alone. An old adversary's return forces the group into a new world, but something has changed. Can they work together to stop the ultimate evil from destroying their homes, or will darkness fall over the dimensions?_

_**Pairings: **KaiHime, Ichiruki_

* * *

><p><strong>Bleach; the Doomsday Tomes<strong>

**Chapter 9: Vicious Fight Part 1; The Armies Clash**

Outside the gates of the tall, shadowy compound, an army of claws and wings stood at the ready, several turrets and legged machines standing guard of the area as well. The job of frontier defense command had been handed to Calamitas, who stood at the ready with his sword in the scabbard on his hip. The Zempacki narrowed his eyes as he heard the first thuds of heavy foot-falls, the tell-tale sign of a force heading their way bringing him to the ready.

"Gresk," he called the wind-type leader over. "Wait for the enemy to act as Skywrath predicted, then send your troops up; the aerial support will be invaluable. If we are to keep the dragons at bay until Lord JX is ready, we must endure their siege for as long as possible."

"I understand," Gresk nodded. He hesitated for a moment, the sound of a drumbeat now audible over the edge of the hill. "Calamitas, are you sure it is wise? To allow that to happen before we advance-"

"I understand your thoughts," the untainted Demon nodded in agreement. "But it will be for the best to divide their best before the battle becomes too testing. Believe me; it will be for the best." He looked to the silver-grey Zempacki. "Do you have them ready?"

"Aerose is prepared and ready," he confirmed. "Magmox, Aquiz, Telsra and Divin are with their partners as well. As ordered, Oscrua and Terax are both loose inside the compound, but ready to join their partners when called for."

"Excellent," Calamitas nodded. In the pause, he noticed the sounds of the enemy advance had faded to nothing. His features showed great seriousness as he nodded. "It's time." He raised his hand. "Positions!"

From over the verge a few hundred metres away, the Drakon forces stood and observed the enemy forces ahead.

"JX is not present," a goblin scout confirmed in a sneering voice. "Nor are six of the Zempacki chiefs, or Skywrath."

"Just as we thought,"Igneous nodded. "What of the forcefield?"

"Active," replied another scout, a pair of red-lensed goggles over his eyes. "And very strong. Linear cannon to thirty thousand."

"Understood," Inferno nodded, turning to the twelve humans and Soul Reapers. "You need to focus your energies into a balanced form about the two orbs. Do not let them slip even a fraction of a hairs width."

"Got it," everyone nodded, gripping onto the metal spheres. A green wireframe projected upwards, showing each level of energy from each person. As they adjusted the balance, Inferno continued to explain.

"In a few moments, we will virtualise you into the cannon module," she went on. "This will digitise your forms into a single entity and launch it at full power into the shield. If the calculations are right, the phase will be out by just enough to let you slip through the field and into the perimeter."

"And if those calculations are wrong?" Uryu asked. Inferno clicked her tongue.

"You could all either be smashed into electrons," she replied. "Or merge into one mass being."

"God, there's a chance of me being merged with these two?" Ed asked jokily, gesturing to Jon and Kai. "It's bad enough being in the same room."

"Keep talking," Jon smirked. "I'll turn you into a human pancake."

"Cut it out," Scourge scolded the group. "We have to move quickly."

"Yes, sir, mister grumps," Ed said with a mocking salute.

"Energy levels stabilised," a goblin snarled as it operated the cannon. "Preparing to energise recipients." A blue energy blue engulfed the twelve humans, drawing them into their energy forms. The goblin nodded. "Maintaining balance, cannon up thirty degrees, starboard pivot thirteen point seven."

"Gyroscopic lock engaged," the second cannon operator said. "Preparing to fire linear cannon."

"Good luck, all of you," Igneous said quietly. "First line, begin charge; distract the enemy forces. Airone, take the aerial troops to position; provide cover for the ground forces and and keep their back up off us."

"Roger that," Airone nodded, his left eye turning amber as he connected two jets to his wings, as well as a hydraulic pack on his spine. "Taking off."

The ground troops charged forwards, the goblins, being the smallest and fastest of the lot, pulling ahead while the slower, larger dragons marched forward behind them. Above, the dragons took to the skies, the whir of jets filling the air as they took flight. Igneous turned to the cannon operators again.

"Fire the linear cannon as soon as you can," he instructed. "Then begin cooldown at maximum rate and prepare bombardment on enemy field generators. If you can, target the Obsidian Eye as well; if we can trap them here, we can end the Zempacki reign this day. If there is trouble, abandon the cannon; it will do no good to lose warriors with equipment."

"Understood," the first operator nodded, the barrel of the cannon glowing green as the modules began to rotate faster and faster. "Energy melding complete, firing linear cannon at charge forty seven thousand over twelve."

A ball of green electricity formed at the muzzle of the cannon before launching at full force at the stronghold, a sonic boom echoing as it broke the sound barrier. The ball slammed into the forcefield around the stronghold, a pulsing of red electricity and static bursting into life around the sphere as it collided. Inside, the group from earth shuddered as the ball stopped abruptly, their consciousnesses jarred by the momentum.

"What happened?" Ichigo asked, startled. Ed sighed.

"Calm down, the field just stopped us," he explained. "This happens all the time, it just takes more energy to get through in one shot."

"So we're stuck here until we break through?" Rukia asked, a little surprised by this. Ichigo huffed.

"Screw waiting," he grumbled. "You said it needed more energy, right? I'll give it more." He eased his grip on his reigned in reiatsu, allowing it to flow more readily. The green glow intensified as they slowly began to move forward.

"It's working?" Uryu said, surprised that Ichigo's energy alone could do this much.

"Here, let me help you, Kurosaki," Kai said, pumping his energy out as well. Spikes of green electricity started to pulse around them as they sped up a little more. Ed's eyes widened.

"Stop! That's too much!" he hissed, but neither Ichigo, nor Kai really listened to the man, pouring their energies into the sphere.

Below the field, Calamitas gazed up at the group, a dark smile on his face.

"Just as we expected," he murmured. "Thunderiser group, thunderise that discharge!"

A collection of five Thunder Zempacki stepped forward, their wings replaced with large battery-like devices wired to their chests and mechanised arms. They aimed their claws, opening them wide, and focussed on their target. Each hand shot out a stream of dark crimson electricity, each one pulsing against the sphere, which jolted to a halt and slowly began to back out of the field. Inside, the group felt the shift.

"Dammit," Alex cursed. "The Thunderisers."

"Thunderisers?" Chad asked.

"A group of modified Zempacki," Ella explained. "They have huge amount of electrical energy at their disposal, and can use it to either form a small shield or a containment field, or to attack people directly."

"This is bad," Jon said with a sigh. "At this rate, they'll push us back out, and then we'll have to start again."

"Not if I can help it!" Renji said, drawing his Zanpakuto. "Now, roar! Zabimaru!" The jagged-toothed sword formed willingly in its master's hands, slightly raising the pressure of their energy ball. "I'll use Zabimaru as a physical anchor to pull us in," he explained. "If I know anything about a forcefield, it cannot expel something inside it."

He swung his blade outwards, driving the hooked head through the wall of the sphere and into the wall of the fortress, where it bit into the stone and held firm. The Lieutenant started to pull the Zanpakuto back in while the others raised their energy levels a little, trying to push inside. Slowly, the sphere moved forwards once more, the effect of the shield lost.

"It's... not working!" one Thunderiser groaned as he struggled to maintain the flow of power.

"Switch to scramble form," another said. "Disrupt their force!"

The red pulses intensified around the sphere, and enclosed it with a powerful shock. The group inside kept pouring in their energy, but soon, something had to give. The green sphere burnt white as the energy inside began to overpower it, and, with an explosion which rippled the forcefield and distorted the zone they had punched through, the orb split into five, throwing the group all over the stronghold and separating them fully. As the field began to seal itself up, Igneous looked over to the hole and sighed a little.

"Good luck, all of you," he said, repeating himself from earlier. "We're all counting on you."

* * *

><p><em><strong>Lucifer Stronghold, Eastern Tower<strong>_

Rukia lifted her head with a groan; her body ached from the disrupted manner of entrance, but her head was scrambled more so due to the rough landing, in which she had head-butted the stone floor. She pushed herself into a sitting position and looked around the room, frowning when she noticed who was there; she could see Alex slumped on the floor, moving slightly as he tried to sit upright, and Jon was also there, standing and peering down the corridor with his Zanpakuto released into its Shikai and propped onto his shoulder. Rukia stood shakily and staggered over to the Sanctuary Operative.

"What happened?" she asked worriedly. "Where are the others?"

"It was the Thunderisers," Jon sighed, looking carefully around for any Zempacki. "They can scramble the cannon shot as a last-minute defence; it doesn't repel the shot, it simply breaks it down into smaller parts. The point of it was originally to reduce the amount of damage caused by a shot, but it works well to scramble an invasion too."

"So, what do we do now?" Rukia asked, slightly more relieved now that she knew Ichigo was inside the stronghold somewhere.

"We'll have to find our way to the others," Jon replied. "Try to find the Zempacki leaders if we can, and eliminate them as we go." He glanced round the corner, hearing the sounds of claws rapping against the stone floors as troops rushed around the stronghold, trying to find the invading group. He looked over to Alex and Rukia. "I would go to Shikai if I were you; it could get messy otherwise."

* * *

><p><em><strong>Lucifer Stronghold, Southern Corridor<strong>_

Uryu and Jess carefully crept along the wall of the corridor, backing into the shadows at the slightest of sounds, not wanting to get caught out in such a small area. She glanced over to him and smiled a little.

"I never knew Quincies were so stealthy," she remarked. He turned to her and straightened his glasses.

"It isn't in our interest to be obvious," Uryu reminded her. "While Ichigo and Renji use methods of fighting which are abrupt and blunt, I prefer to use discretion whenever possible."

"Hm, impressive," Jess murmured, looking the way they had come from to make sure they were not being followed. "I wonder how the others are doing?"

"I'm sure they are fine," Uryu said, pausing in thought as a loud explosion echoed from outside, a ball of reishi erupting into the air and lighting the area. "Then again, I have been wrong before."

Jess giggled as they headed off again, wondering silently where the others had ended up.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Lucifer Stronghold, South Wall Courtyard<strong>_

Chad turned mid-run and offloaded another shot of reiyoku in the form of his El Directo. His shielded arm offered protection from the swords aimed at him as he charged, trying to find a good place to enter the main structure, having been thrown out into the grounds in the middle of the Zempacki ranks gathered. It was not unreasonable to understand what had happened from there.

Suddenly, the wall nearby exploded behind Chad as a jet of flame licked at the ground and the air, singeing the wreckage in the area and any Zempacki unfortunate enough to be in the area and not of the Fire-type.

"Chad!" Ed shouted, using his Solar Spear to keep the Zempacki at bay. "This way!"

The Hispanic giant turned quickly and ran towards his ally, hurrying through the hole in the wall and running with Ed as they escaped the masses of troops, who seemed more concerned with holding back the dragons and goblins at the main gates than dealing with the invaders.

"It's good to see I got to you in time!" Ed called with a grin as they ran. "We need to find out where they're hiding JX and try to break into it; we may not be able to stop him, but at least we can try to clear the way for the others."

"Are the others ok?" Chad asked calmly as ever.

"Let's hope so," Ed replied. "Else this will be an awkward invasion."

Chad simply nodded, rushing forwards, but the two slid to a stop as they heard a light laughter, child-like but chilling. They turned around to see where it had come from, their eyes widening as they saw the beings stood in the shadows.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Lucifer Stronghold, Central Column 3<strong>_

Ella and Orihime carefully watched from above as the Zempacki rushed around, trying to find them. The Sanctuary Agent turned and smiled to the human.

"This was a good idea," she mentioned encouragingly; it had been Orihime's idea to climb up and into the column where they were taking refuge. Orihime smiled bashfully.

"Oh, it was nothing, really," she said, being modest as she always was. There was a pause, then Ella spoke once more.

"You're worried about him, aren't you?" she asked. The auburn-haired woman looked down, knowing who the shorter woman meant. "He seems to be becoming more distant," she went on. "I'm worried about him too; I have seen the way he is acting before, and I don't want to think what could happen if history repeats itself." Orihime looked over.

"How long have you known Kai?" she asked.

"Eleven years, I think," Ella replied. "We went to school together before all this. It was on a school trip where it all went a bit... crazy." She faltered. "Six years ago, we got pulled into a distortion in the fabric of space and the dimensions; that was the first time we came here. That was when JX was born, named from the supposed evolution of mankind brought on by the Demon God of Justice; hence the abbreviation 'JX'."

Orihime nodded, but she did not move to speak again, as another group of Zempacki charged by. They decided to stay put for the moment, formulating a plan of what to do.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Lucifer Stronghold, Lower Passages<strong>_

"Dammit, it's this way!" came Renji's angered shout.

"No, it's this way!" Ichigo barked back. The two of them had been arguing loudly over which way to go for a very long time. "Every time we go the way you say, we end end getting lost and running into a huge force!"

"Every time we go _your_ way, we end up at a dead end!" Renji shot back. The third member of their group stood leaning against his zanpakuto, a look of irritation on his face.

"We're going _this_ way!" they both barked, heads slammed against one another's.

"Chaos Wave!" Kai shouted, launching a vertical beam of reshi through the floor and into the ceiling. Both Ichigo and Renji turned to face him as he sheathed his sword. "Argue all you like, I'm going this way," he growled. He turned away from them. "Try to keep up."

With that, he leapt down the hole he had made and disappeared down the corridor below. The two Soul Reapers looked at one another, wondering what was making their comrade act so strangely.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Demon Laboratory, Extreme Level<strong>_

Inside the sealed chamber, the shouts and cries of pain which echoed were starting to subside. The initial awakening of the Impendium Crucible fragments had sped up the consequent awakenings, and the third piece was already in place and fused with its host. The man breathed heavily and shallowly, sweat dripping thickly from his head. He wiped at his brow with his right arm, trying to calm his heart rate and breath.

"Another piece..." he huffed. "Another piece merged with my being... My body is tiring faster with every part... I will soon have to provide it... It's almost time for the sacrifice..."

* * *

><p><em>I apologise to everyone who has been waiting for this, but I have been busy of late. Admittedly it was not meant to take a month, but between school and a lot of other stuff going on, I kinda lost track of time. Sorry about that.<em>

_Well, I've decided to continue with this, if only to see it through. I've noticed people keep whining that Kai is stronger than Ichigo, and, while that is true at the moment, that ratio will not be permanent. I do not remember off the top of my head whether I have said this before, but there is one more story planned in this series, and it will be much different to the last few._

_Last thing before I go; to the cowards who post in blind rage about Kai as guests so that I cannot justify my reasoning. I do wish people would consider having the courtesy to allow me to explain myself. Also, if you have done this, and are reading this now, I want to point out that Ichigo does not have to be the ultimate power; Ulquiorra proved that to a degree in the manga and anime. So, please, do think before reviewing, and consider whether it is really a problem or an issue you possess._

_Sorry to go off like that, but I had to get that off my chest. I'll write again as soon as I can, and update whenever possible._

_Goodbye for now, everyone!_


	10. Vicious Fight 2

_**Disclaimer: **I do not own Bleach, Tite Kubo does. However, note that anything not of the Manga/Anime (unless I point out otherwise) is of my own design, including my OCs Kai, Rertyan and the Sanctuary Team._

_**Warnings: **Contains slight romantic reference, swearing and violence throughout._

_**Brief: **Just over a year has passed since the initial incident which brought Kai to Karakura, and it seems his past just will not leave him alone. An old adversary's return forces the group into a new world, but something has changed. Can they work together to stop the ultimate evil from destroying their homes, or will darkness fall over the dimensions?_

_**Pairings: **KaiHime, Ichiruki_

* * *

><p><strong>Bleach; the Doomsday Tomes<strong>

**Chapter 10: Vicious Fight Part 2; The Champions Clash**

Ed gritted his teeth as he gazed upon the duo of beings, one standing before them with a long claymore on its shoulder while the other was floating in the background. The red scales and orange underbelly denoting the fire type Zempacki, but it differed from the others; besides the more impressive blade, the figure was much taller and stronger looking, along with having a blue-white flame on the tip of its tail and about its head, the plume burning brighter than the normal red-orange fire. The Zempacki smiled a little as the two adolescents walked into the chamber and stopped.

The creature behind the Zempacki was completely different; it was two feet tall at best, wreathed in docile flames. It was orange in colour with darker orange-red hair and white eyes with no pupils or irises, and wearing a yellow tunic. In its hand lay an orange blade which curved around the hand and forming a lop-sided crescent. It gave another child-like laugh as it gazed upon them.

"Are they here to play?" the creature asked.

"I feel they might be in the mood for something more than playing, Magmox," the Zempacki said. His smile widened as he spotted Ed. "Long time no see, boy. Last time we met, you were not so tall."

"Infernus," Ed replied. "Last time we met, you were decidely more of an ass."

The Zempacki chuckled.

"Still with the fire," he said, amused. "I like that." He looked to Chad. "Who's yer friend?"

"Yasutora Sado," Ed introduced. "This is the leader of the Fire type Zempacki, Infernus, along with his partner Magmox."

"A head Zempacki?" Chad asked. "So, this guy is the equivalent of a Captain?"

"Equivalent?" Infernus snorted. "I have heard of the people you call Captains, and I tell you, boy, we are much stronger." Infernus rolled his shoulders and grinned. "Now, shall we make this interesting and cut to the chase, kid?"

"Bankai vs Elemental Imbued Form, eh?" Ed said with a laugh. "Alright." He turned to Chad. "You might want to go all out here too," he warned. "This will be intense. Bankai!"

As Ed took on his Bankai, Infernus began to raise his energy into the level where he could begin the fusion. Magmox took its place before his chest, glowing bright orange.

"Elemental Imbument!" Infernus shouted. "Calamity Golem of Fire!"

Magmox burst into a whirl of sparkling orange dust, spinning violently around Infernus, who began to groan and moan as his body took in the dust and began to change. His wings stretched painfully as the flesh between each phlange tore away and shrunk away to be replaced by deep blue flames. Infernus' arms and legs stretched out and grew more defined as flames enclosed his wrists and ankles. Black spines pierced the flesh in his back and neck as his torso and neck warped to account for the new limb size and the growing head. His snout stretched out with a sickening crunching as his jaws broke and reshaped into a sharper design. The transformation finished as the elbows and knees sprouted short sharp spikes and the collar bones and back became wreathed in the blue flames. Infernus grunted and growled as he regained his composure. Chad watched as the transformation occurred before him, almost sickened by the grotesque change. He had seen Arrancar go through their release, which could sometimes be horrific, but this was something entirely different.

"So," Infernus growled at last, his voice both more deep and shrill, like a Vizard's voice while wearing their mask. "Am I to assume you are both my opponent?"

"You are," Ed nodded, two long flame spears sprouting from his forearm jets.

"Good," Infernus replied, a purple-blue tongue licking his lips. "This might be interesting then!"

He lunged with frightening speed for such a large being, impacting the column in the corridor behind Ed and Chad as they dodged and crushing it flat. Chad felt sweat bead on his brow as the creature shot by, and he realised that its reiatsu was exerting an intense temperature as well. Despite his encounters with the Arrancar in Hueco Mundo had taught him of the horrific transformations and shocking power which a being could possess, but this was something new, like the very element of fire was at this creature's disposal.

"It is," Ed said, as if reading Chad's mind. "Before you ask; he is exerting a heat boost in the area. That is his passive capability in this form; once a Zempacki utilises the Elemental Imbument, it gains full manipulation of the element in question. This is why I told you to be ready at your strongest; this will be quite a difficult fight."

Before anything more could be said, Infernus rushed them again, claws burning with heat now. Chad brought his shielded arm in to block, unable to move aside in time, when a burning pain shot through his right arm. Looking at the shield front, Chad saw four long scratches in the armour, a thin line of blood in the middle two. He looked shocked for a time, then turned his gaze to the blazing Zempacki, who was licking the red, charred blood from his claws with a twisted grin.

"If that is all you have," the large creature purred. "I suggest you leave before you die."

Chad grimaced, trying to hold his fear back; he knew he could not just leave now.

* * *

><p>Further underground, the sounds of clashing swords and severing flesh echoed throughout the corridors as two human figures charged through the chambers and passageways, a hoard of Zempacki everywhere they went.<p>

"I told you this was the wrong way!" Renji shouted as he retracted his whip-like blade mid-run.

"What are you talking about?!" Ichigo shouted back. "This is the way _you_ said to go!" He turned and parried a swing from a Zempacki on his left before punching it in the snout, not stopping as he did.

"Well, why didn't we go _your_ way, Strawberry?!" Renji shot back.

"Because _you're_ too stubborn to listen to me, Pineapple Head!" Ichigo yelled. The two of them had been butting-heads since they ended up where they were, and even the huge number of opponents around them was not enough to stop that. "Anyway, this might be the right direction."

"Huh?" Renji asked, surprised by this.

"Think about it," Ichigo replied, grunting a little mid sentence as he swung his sword once and through the jaw of a Zemacki. "All these troops down here must be guarding something important. Maybe this is where this JX guy is hiding."

"You know," Renji said with a sigh. "Now I think about it, you're right. It does makes sense." He looked over his shoulder. "First things first, let's get rid of these guys."

"Alright," Ichigo nodded, spotting a large archway ahead with no one through it. "Here we go!" He grasped his sword in both hands and swung it back, the blade glowing deep blue as he prepared his attack. "Getsuga..." He paused, waiting until they were passing just before the arch, then shouted out, "Tenshou!"

The blue arc of energy crashed into the keystone for the arch and smashed it into dust. The ceiling and walls shook as they buckled and the archway collapsed into the corridor, blocking it with a pile of rubble and debris. Ichigo and Renji paused a moment to catch their breath, safe on the other side of the rock pile.

"Good call," Renji complimented.

"Thanks," Ichigo nodded. "Now, let's move before they get through that."

The red-headed Lieutenant nodded and hurried after the orange-haired Captain, heading further into the dark depths of the fortress, unaware of the horrors beneath their feet as they ran.

* * *

><p>Deep underground, on the lowest level of the compound, the laboratory was a buzz with excitement.<p>

"It's ready!" one of the underlings cried with joy, "It's finally ready!"

"But what about the pilot?" another asked anxiously. "Do we know who it is?"

"Not yet," the first replied. "But soon."

In amidst the conversations, the leader of the science division looked to the two in the room other than himself.

"Are you sure about this, sir?" the female Zempacki asked worriedly. "This is incredibly risky."

"I understand your concern, Joule," Thundrax replied. "But it takes much knowledge of the machine in order to control it successfully. It is necessary for me to make this sacrifice."

"And you are prepared for that too, Telsra?" Joule asked.

"I am willing to commit myself to the cause," the elemental replied with a nod, its teal toga-like clothing buzzing with electricity. "And to master Thundrax."

"There can be no turning back now," Thundrax nodded. "Now, I ask you this before I leave this place to you, Joule; help me prepare for this."

"Alright," Joule said with sadness in her voice. She raised her hand, a small tubular device with a green tip in her claws. "Hold still, this will hurt a bit."

The sound of energy discharging and a loud cry of pain echoed throughout the lab as Thundrax began his final move.

* * *

><p>Not far from the lab, a dark-haired human wrenched his large sword out from another Zempacki, having cleaved it in two along with part of the wall behind it. He could feel his darker self's presence nearby, and this was urging him on further.<p>

"Need to be faster," he said in a growl. "Bankai!"

The winged form of his Bankai took shape just moments before he took off, using his wings to fly to the core of the fortress and reach it faster. In his haste, he did not notice the dark-scaled, rather large Zempacki dwelling in the shadows.

Damcras grinned as he watched Kai dart passed him.

"Excellent," he murmured. "Soon, we shall be rid of that pretentious human, and then I shall be the leader of the Zempacki, after I kill the murderer of our leader. I just need to wait for him to perform the deed, and then I will make my move."

The dark Zempacki dispersed into the darkness once more, intent on watching the battle from a distance.

* * *

><p>Inside the core chamber, JX's groans and growls echoed, louder than before; the strain on his body was growing both with time and with every piece of the corrupt armour which had taken hold of him. He had just experienced another piece, bringing him to his fourth of five; only the final part remained, but estimates were sketchy; it could be minutes, or hours before it was awake and ready for him to unite with.<p>

"Damn... this is becoming painful..." the dark warrior ground out. "It is good that-"

"Wait! Stop him!" a shout came from the huge bulkhead doors to the laboratory. "Don't let him through!"

"It's no good!"

"Look out! Watch that- Gah!"

There was a loud crash and the door shuddered in its frame, the heavy locks letting out a single groan. Silence fell, as even the shouts and cries from the scientists had died down. JX looked to the door and watched it for a moment, before it shook again, trembling as a torrent of dust poured from the ceiling and the walls around the frame. A single bolt had snapped out of place in the huge metallic barricade.

"Here he comes," JX managed to say as he composed himself. Another loud crash and the door indented in the middle. "At last..." With one final crash, the a black and red energy wave blasted through the door and crashed into the wall opposite. The wall cracked and opened wide into a crevice as the wave dissipated at last. Through the smouldering hole in the thick, large door stepped a winged human, a dark look on his face which was beginning to give way to a mixture of amazement and disgust. "Welcome, Kai."

"What... What have you done to yourself?" Kai asked. "You're-"

"Perfect? Astonishing? Perhaps beyond compare?" JX offered vainly.

"I was going for insane," Kai corrcted. JX snorted.

"Cretin," he replied. "You have no recognition for beauty or power."

Kai looked JX over again; the man had become infused with the limbs of the powerful armour, the purple-pink tendrils bound around his arms and legs, red armour formed around the shoulders, forearms and shins. Four eyes rolled in the sockets, one on the left shin, right knee, left shoulder and right forearm each. The tendrils wove up the back and front of JX's torso, meeting in the centre where they joined together. In all their glory, the four limbs were horrific.

"The Wanderer's Anchor, the Oracle's Eye, the Leviathan's Carapace and the Heretic's Sword," Kai said aloud. "Each of those make the Left Arm of Destruction, the Left Leg of Greed, the Right Leg of Torment and the Right Arm of Chaos. But I see a weakness; you're still missing a piece." JX snorted.

"You refer to the Halfbreed's Soul, the Centre Piece of Incarnation itself," the man replied. "But it matters not for now. As I stand before you, I am undergoing the evolution I need to put an end to this petty conflict once and for all." JX drew his Zanpakuto. "Let me show you the resolve I hold." The blade shuddered and slid open, but the usual energy torrent did not energy. Instead, the blade cracked and broke away into dust. Kai gaped. "Yes, you can see it, can't you; the Chaos Vortex within my Zanpakuto has been harnessed by this armour to fuel it. With this might, I have access to the massive reserve of power this armour holds. Allow me to show you."

JX held his hand to the right and focused, a dark aura enveloping him. A red circle traced in the air around Hellraiser's hilt, energising it.

"Fall from the shadows, and be born anew," JX growled, the skull on the hilt rotating round until it was upsidedown. It also grew smaller, a faint cross of red energy developing behind it. "Let the power of the Chaos Vortex flow freely, and birth a new form of darkness." The cross became spiked, forming a spider-web like metal panel with four quarter circles cut from the centre around the skull of Hellraiser. The pommel also warped, becoming a large dagger-like blade on the back of the weapon. The red circle was glowing brightly, faint crackles of electric energy surging in the centre. "Harness the darkness and let chaos run rampent once more!" JX raised the hilt into the air and roared a single word into the sky. "DARKSPIRE!"

The circle of energy lit up brightly as it became a single portal. A red shape warped in the portal as the sword was pulled from the portal, searing with heat from being forged. As it cooled, taking its real colours, Kai admired the magnificent but horrifying blade; it was a huge blade, extending almost two metres from the cross-guard and matching the width of the spider web design in places. The blade was whole, but had three large curved blades on each cutting edge at regular intervals. Beyond these spikes, two bladed extensions cut around the cross by a few inches before stopping in a sharp tip each. The colours finally took shape as the portal snapped shut; the white cutting edge surrounding the black flat, the purple-blue binding and the rusted bronze cross giving the weapon a wonderful, yet brutal look, like it was made of corruption itself.

"This, my foolish counterpart," JX said, showing the weapon to Kai. "Is my Zanpakuto, reforged in shadow and born of chaos. That is one of the great powers of the Impendium Crucible; pure power. It is hopeless for you to fight me."

"So you have a new sword," Kai replied, holding his resolve. "It doesn't change the fact that you are not the only one augmented." He focused his reiatsu, an intense, black and red energy overflowing his blade. The air atop the dragons head. "Chaos Wave," he said, reeling back as he charged at JX, mask on. He vanished in a whirl of reiatsu, then reappeared in a blast of dark energy above JX. A jet of flame erupted from the dragon head. "Full throttle!"

The arc of energy let fly, an edge of fire wreathing it as it flew at JX. Before it had even impacted, Kai had performed another Screech Step, firing another Full Throttle Chaos Wave and repeating the process. Each wave struck in quick succession, each adding to the explosion of reiatsu and fire which erupted around JX's form. After several minutes of this, Kai charged in, holding the Chaos Wave into the sword and swinging into the dark alter ego.

"I told you it's useless!" JX roared from the black smoke, and a fist struck Kai in the chest, knocking him backwards and into a wall with a loud crunch and cracking of debris. The Chaos Wave launched uncontrolled at the wall behind JX, bringing down a large section of it. Kai panted as he pulled himself from the rubble. "You confuse me, Kai."

"How do you figure that?" Kai asked groggily.

"The form you took on in the human world is much stronger than your Bankai," JX explained. "And yet you persist to attack with Bankai. Why is that?"

"Shut up!" Kai roared, firing another Chaos Wave, but JX simply clawed it with his left hand and threw the arc aside, blowing out another part of the wall without taking a scratch. He smirked.

"Ah, I see," he mused. "I did more than just defeat you back then; I made you see."

"See what?" Kai asked angrily. "See what a monster looks like?"

"No, see what you truly are," JX replied. "Think about it; if you wanted to kill me, why would you not take your strongest form? If you wanted me dead, why would you extend the duration of this conflict and not end it quickly?" Kai was at a loss of what to say. "The answer is that you know what you are; you are alone, like I am.

"You're so-called friends, why are they not here if this is what you all came for?" JX went on. "Why would they leave you to deal with the true enemy alone? They have been using you, Kai. They want you power for their needs, and that is all. They don't care about you. They loath you. They fear you. They _hate_ you." Kai's eyes darkened as he thought on this. "But I would welcome you, Kai. We are one in the same. As one, we shall take this place for ourselves."

Kai looked down, but a twisted grin took shape along his face.

"What would you have me do?" he asked darkly, bringing a smile to JX's face.

* * *

><p><em>Sorry this took so long, but I've had other things to do and other things playing on my mind.<em>

_So, sorry about that._

_And sorry that that won't be over any time soon, but it has to be for the time being._

_Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it, and that the next chapter will be out soon._

_Until then, bye for now!_


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